


Frozen II: An Extended Partial Retelling

by Glacial_Ghost



Category: Frozen (Disney Movies)
Genre: Action Scenes, Action/Adventure, Adventure, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Magic, Disney, Disney Movies, Elemental - Freeform, Elemental Magic, Elementals, Elsanna - Freeform, Fantasy, Fantasy/Adventure, Frozen II, Ghosts, Giant monster, Giant monsters, Giants, Kaiju, Kristanna, Magic, Movie: Frozen (2013), Movie: Frozen 2 (2019), Mystical Creatures, Mythical Beings & Creatures, action sequences, elsamaren, frozen, frozen 2, ghost - Freeform, giant, mythological creatures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-09-21
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:29:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 49,357
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25113943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Glacial_Ghost/pseuds/Glacial_Ghost
Summary: What if Elsa had discovered more in Ahtohallan than just a sparkly new dress and a room full of death? What if Anna did more than just get thrown down a hill and trick someone else into breaking a wall? What if Kristoff and Sven hadn't been kicked out of the movie for the entire second half? All these and more can be found within this partial rewrite of Disney's Frozen II.
Comments: 11
Kudos: 56





	1. Chapter I

**Author's Note:**

> This picks up the instant Elsa finishes singing Show Yourself in Ahtohallan and then veers off from there. Everything before that point is exactly the same as it is in the movie, with one exception - When Anna and Elsa begin to leave the Northuldra camp and realize Kristoff and Sven aren't with them, Anna sends Olaf to find them. This means Olaf is with Kristoff and Sven, not the sisters, and that Anna gets sent away in the canoe alone. But aside from the relocation of Olaf, everything else is exactly the same. And now, without further ado...

_"Hi, I'm Olaf! And I like warm hugs!"_

_"I love you, Olaf!"_

The sound of those voices sent Elsa reeling. It was as if she had been sent back through time to her own childhood. When things were good. Of course, it wasn't actually herself and her sister she was looking at. It was more like... an echo, a copy, made entirely of snow, far more detailed than any of the creatures she had brought to life before. As she looked around at the rest of the cavern, she found more and more of these 'snow echoes' appearing around her, going through more and more of her past. There seemed to be no order to them, appearing completely at random.

Sneezing out a small group of Snowgies as she attempted to celebrate Anna's birthday.

The coronation ritual which resulted in her becoming Queen of Arendelle.

The realization that Olaf was her and Anna's Christmas tradition.

Creating Marshmallow to escort Anna and Kristoff out of her ice palace.

_"Anna!"_

Had she known what the voice was coming from, she never would have looked. Unfortunately, she turned towards the source of the voice just as the beam of magic collided with five year old Anna's face. Elsa shuddered as the memories came flooding back. That was the night everything changed... She forced herself to move on through the room, spotting other echoed memories as she went.

Her and Anna's argument at the coronation ball.

Setting up Anna's birthday party with Kristoff.

Her mother, Queen Iduna, singing a lullaby to her and Anna.

The birth of Olaf.

She took a moment to watch and appreciate the snowman's creation, since she had somehow completely missed it when she had done it before. Just as she started to smile from the memory, she saw her father King Agnarr nearby, along with a young version of herself. Elsa's smile widened as she approached the duo, only to inhale sharply as she realized the scene she was witnessing was the day her father introduced her to her concealing gloves. Wrapping her arms around herself, Elsa frowned and continued on though the memories.

_"HERE I STAND, IN THE LIGHT OF DAY...!"_

_Oh, no_ , Elsa thought, wincing at the sight of her former declaration of freedom. Not that the moment itself was cringe worthy, but rather a certain aspect of it she was noticing for the first time. _I really DO move my hips like that. I... I need to be more careful with that._ She chuckled softly as she watched 'herself' in disbelief for another moment before moving on.

_"Like a chicken with the face of a monkey!"_

Elsa rolled her eyes as she recalled how amusing the Duke of Weselton's dance moves were. It's a shame he turned out to be a treacherous attempted murderer.

_"Prince Hans of the Southern Isles."_

Elsa's lip curled in disgust as she watched the would be slayer of her and her sister introduce himself to Anna. With a wave of her hand, Hans - or at least his snow echo - was instantly destroyed, crumbling to pieces. Deeper into the cave she trekked. Soon the snow echoes became more than just her own memories. She began to see her parents, Agnarr and Iduna, as teenagers, something Elsa clearly had never witnessed before. She smiled as she watched the two flirt with one another.

_"Why, hello, Iduna."_

_"Greetings, your Majesty."_

Elsa smiled as she saw her parents in a way she'd never even imagined them being before, early in their courtship. She made her way past their first real date, then their wedding. As she continued on, she came across a scene of a young Agnarr along with his father, King Runeard.

"Grandfather..." Elsa gasped as she recognized the man, surprised to see him even in this setting. Almost as if on command, the Runeard echo's head turned away from Agnarr and looked directly at her. Elsa's heart stopped for a second and she raised an eyebrow. Surely this was just part of the memory...?

Runeard smiled. "I never would've thought... My own granddaughter."

Elsa's eyes widened.

"Hello, Elsa."

Elsa let out a cry of surprise and leapt back, raising her hands and generating icy magic within their palms, ready to defend herself. "Wh-what?!"

Taking a step back, Runeard lifted his hands in a reassuring manner. "Forgive me! I didn't mean to frighten you."

"Explain. Now!" Elsa demanded, her magic still pulsating in her hands. "What are you?"

"Elsa, it's me. Your grandfather."

"I can see that! I mean what are you _really?_ "

"No, Elsa, you don't understand. It's _actually_ me. I'm not a memory. I am King Runeard of Arendelle. Your grandfather."

Confusion crossed Elsa's face as she tried to understand. "N-no, it can't be. You..."

Runeard nodded. "Died. I know. I... I'm pretty sure I still am. Dead, that is." He watched as Elsa still tried to comprehend the situation. "But, for what it's worth, even though the circumstances aren't ideal, I'm glad to finally meet you."

Calming down slightly, Elsa nodded, the magic fading from her hands. "I suppose it is good to meet you as well, grandfather. Forgive my reaction, I just..."

Laughing softly, he waved his hand dismissively. "Please, it's completely understandable. This is a rather strange situation. I don't blame you for being wary."

Elsa finally lowered her hands completely, taking a moment to breathe. "I just... I don't understand. How are you alive? _Are_ you alive? Everything else in here is just a memory. Why aren't you? I mean, clearly there's magic involved, but..."

Runeard laughed softly, nodding as she tried to work it out. "I know, it's all so crazy. I'm not entirely sure I understand it myself."

Elsa slowly circled her grandfather as if inspecting him. "You're made entirely of snow..."

"I think there's some ice in there somewhere too," he joked. After a moment of Elsa looking him over, he continued. "I think I was just so desperate to watch out over my kingdom, my family, everything I had created... I think my soul, or whatever you'd like to call it, was brought here and kept alive by the magic of this place, this... Ahtohallan."

Elsa nodded as she listened to him theorize, digesting all this. "How long have you been here?"

"Ever since we were attacked by the Northuldra."

"Thirty four years...?"

The former king was clearly stunned. "Dear lord, has it been that long already?" he asked. Elsa smiled sadly and nodded. Runeard sighed. "I can only hope they haven't completely destroyed Arendelle. It's alright, isn't it? Our castle still stands strong?"

"You don't know?"

Runeard shook his head. "I don't have... everything," he told her, reaching up and gesturing to his temple. "Pieces, mostly. Things I've been able to stitch together from the memories held within this cave. I've got a vague idea, but..."

Elsa nodded in understanding. "Arendelle is good. Our castle stands and the people prosper."

Runeard let out a sigh of relief. "Good, good. I knew Agnarr would make a fine leader. Tell me, how is he these days?"

Despite her already snowy white complexion, Elsa paled and frowned slightly. "You don't know."

Runeard had been beaming proudly at the idea of his son leading Arendelle into prosperity, but turned and looked at Elsa when he heard her quiet response. "Know what?"

"King Agnarr... Both our parents... They're dead," she told him, looking up at him. "They've been dead for six years now. I currently rule Arendelle along with my sister, Anna."

Runeard deflated with a heavy sigh, looking down in sadness. "My poor boy." After a moment, he lifted his head, attempting to smile as he looked at Elsa. "But, you said Arendelle is thriving?"

Recognizing that he was trying to push past the pain, Elsa nodded. "Yes! With Anna at my side, the two of us have taken great care of it."

"Well that's some good news, at least!" Runeard said happily, reaching over and placing a hand on Elsa's shoulder. "Glad to hear my granddaughters have become such fine leaders! I look forward to meeting your sister."

Elsa glanced down at Runeard's hand, then back up at him. "Meeting...?"

"Of course!" he replied with a smile. "You don't plan on staying here forever, do you?"

"Well, no, of course not, but... But how would you leave? Aren't you... _here?_ " Elsa asked, gesturing to the cave around them as confusion overtook her once again.

"Oh, Elsa, I apologize," Runeard said, softly laughing at himself for a moment. "Living among all these jumbled memories sometimes makes me forget what has and hasn't happened yet."

Elsa nodded, understanding the statement but not yet seeing where he was going with it.

Runeard smiled as he looked her in the face. "It's a plan I've had in mind for some time now. I don't know if it'll work or not, as I'm no expert in magic, of course..."

Elsa's face was scrunched in confusion as she tried to understand.

"...but I think your powers can help me."

Her eyes widened. "Wh-what do you mean? How...?"

"You have power over ice and snow, don't you?" he asked her.

She nodded slowly. "Well, yes..."

"And you've created life before, haven't you? Your little snowman friend?"

"Olaf, yes," she answered, nodding. "But how can I--"

Calmly, Runeard stepped towards her, gently taking her hands in his. "Elsa, all you have to do is make me a new body with your powers. One that's not tied to Ahtohallan," he told her, smiling. "With all the magic coursing through this cave, and maybe a little luck, I can transfer over to the new body. Yes, I'll still be made of snow, but I won't be stuck here anymore! I could finally leave this place! I could come home to Arendelle. Finally spend some time getting to know my granddaughters."

Elsa gasped slightly, pulling her hands from his and taking a step back, her head spinning.

Runeard looked at her, confused. "Elsa...?"

"I'm sorry, it's just..." She took a moment to collect and steady herself. Finally, she inhaled and addressed her ancestor. "I want to help you, grandfather. I truly do. But what you're asking of me... I'm not sure I can accomplish."

The former king gave her confused a look. "But you've created life before!" he reiterated.

"I've only ever done it intentionally once," she clarified a little sheepishly. "And even then, those instances were just... animating snow. With you... You were a real, living human being with a soul. I would have absolutely no idea how to factor that into the process."

"But, Elsa..." Already the desperation could be heard creeping into Runeard's voice.

Elsa started wringing her hands together as she tried to think. "I... I'm not saying 'no.' I will not leave here until I've done all I can to help you. Just... Let me think about it for a while, would you? Please?"

Standing up straight, Runeard nodded, stone faced. "Of course, granddaughter," he answered, turning and looking off to the side. "I shouldn't have pushed. Take as much time as you need."

"Thank you," Elsa said, sighing with relief.

Despite his understanding response, Runeard was internally fuming. He didn't need this foolish uncertainty from her, not when he was this close to being brought back. Nevertheless, he decided to distract himself for the time being and, still looking off to the side of the cave, spoke to his granddaughter.

"Tell me... How did he die?"

Elsa tilted her head, uncertain. "'He?'"

Runeard turned and stared directly at his granddaughter. "My son."

Elsa mentally slapped herself and sighed sadly, closing her eyes. "They... Their ship went down in the Dark Sea."

Runeard shared his own mournful sigh. "Oh, Agnarr... My poor, poor boy. To die like that..."

"It was all my fault," Elsa said, her eyes starting to water. "They were trying to make their way here. They thought this place would hold answers as to why I... why I have my powers. If it weren't for me, they... they never would have..." Her sentence stopped there as she found herself unable to finish it.

Suddenly, Runeard's hands were on her shoulders. "Elsa. It was not your fault. The Dark Sea is a dangerous, dangerous place." Elsa looked up at her grandfather and offered him a weary smile. She didn't fully believe his words, but she at least appreciated the sentiment. "You were not responsible for Agnarr's decision to try and cross it," he told her. He lowered his head and sighed. "That filthy Northuldra woman... She's the one to blame. It's all her fault."

Elsa went obviously stiff in Runeard's hands. Concern building on her face, she looked up at him, uncertain. "'Filthy Northuldra woman'...?" she asked him. She certainly didn't like how he was referring to... whomever he was speaking of. She had a sinking feeling she knew, but she wanted to make certain. "You mean Elder Yelena...?"

"Who?" Runeard asked, unfamiliar with the name. "No. I mean that tribal girl my son foolishly took as his queen."

"Wh-what...?" Elsa reacted as if she'd been slapped across the face. She swatted Runeard's hands from her shoulders and took a step back. "That's my mother... Anna's mother... She didn't do anything to your son. She loved him."

Runeard glared at her, as if completely disgusted by the idea that Iduna truly cared for his heir. "Someone like her could never have loved my Agnarr. She was a dirty savage who bewitched and tricked him, up until his death. She deserved _worse_ than a shipwreck!"

For a brief moment, Elsa was in pure shock from his words. Within seconds, however, her shock was replaced with fury. Her lip curled in anger. "That is my mother. She gave her life for me. You will not speak of her that way!"

Snow began to rise and swirl around the furious Queen of Arendelle.

Despite the ordinarily fearsome display, Runeard simply chuckled and shook his head. "Such childish emotion. There is no need for all that flashy magic, girl. That is your mother's influence. You need to do away with that unless you want your power to control you."

Elsa narrowed her eyes at the former king. "The only thing that needs to be done away with here is _you_ ," she sneered. Lifting her right arm, she motioned with her hand the same way she had upon seeing Hans' echo earlier. But unlike Hans, Runeard did not break into pieces. He remained standing tall in front of her, completely unaffected.

"Wh-what...?" Elsa's face turned even paler. She was stunned, her mind racing. She looked at her hands in a panic. Why hadn't that worked? She knew her powers were still at full force. She was the queen of ice and snow! That should have worked.

"Hah, you see, you foolish girl?" Runeard laughed, watching her as she tried to comprehend what was happening. "You've become far too reliant on magic solving all your problems. Just like your mother and her people. That's why they couldn't be trusted."

Despite her unease, Elsa managed to strike a defensive stance as she glared at her grandfather in anger. "If it weren't for my mother, I wouldn't even have these powers that you covet so much! They were her gift to me!"

"Oh, really? And how have they served you thus far?"

Elsa was thrown as Runeard's question cut deep. The storm around her flickered and the snow began to fall back to the floor. The former king smirked.

"That's what I thought. I know what she did to you, Elsa. What your life has been because of your powers." Runeard stepped towards her. "So unfair of your _loving mother_ to burden you with such strength before you were even old enough to comprehend it."

Elsa took a slow step back. "That... That's n-not what h-happened."

"Isn't it, though?" he asked her. "You know I'm right, Elsa. She didn't love you. She _cursed_ you. And she fooled my son, your own father, into tormenting you alongside her."

The tears welling in Elsa's eyes threatened to spill. "N-no..."

"Tell me, Elsa," the old king said, crossing his arms as he stood directly in front of her. "If your mother was Northuldra and grew up with magic as a part of her daily life, why didn't she ever bring it up with you once your powers became an issue?"

Elsa stumbled as his question pierced her to the core. Whatever type of man her grandfather was... The question he had just asked was a valid one. No, there must have been a reason her mother hadn't mentioned her old life. Her knowledge of magic. She loved Elsa. Didn't she? "S-stop..."

" _How many years did she lock you away in that room?_ "

" _STOP IT!_ "

Her legs were no longer able to sustain her own weight. Mentally overwhelmed, Elsa collapsed to the cave's icy floor, now openly sobbing. She was lost in her sorrow, the years of trauma she thought she'd suppressed surging back to the surface, temporarily paralyzing her. After a moment, she was vaguely aware of her former grandfather stepping up beside her, but was still too distraught to do anything about it.

Runeard clicked his tongue, shaking his head as he watched the crying girl below him. "Poor girl. Too much baggage. Too badly broken. What a shame."

Elsa wiped her nose with her sleeve and glared up angrily at Runeard through her teary eyes. "I. Am not. Broken."

The previous king let out a chuckle. "No, Elsa, of course you're not. However, it's become quite obvious that you are either unwilling or unable to help your grandfather, the former King of Arendelle, in his time of need. It's a shame, really. We could have made quite the team together." Taking his attention away from Elsa, Runeard looked out into the rest of the cave at the snow echoes as they continued to move about. His eyes fell upon an echo of Anna as she and Elsa rode a bike together through the halls of the castle. He smiled. "But perhaps it's not a total loss. Maybe the princess will be more loyal to her family's legacy."

Elsa's eyes snapped open, her own pain instantly forgotten. Lifting her head, she glared up at her grandfather. "You stay away from her." Snow began to rise from the cave floor once again.

Runeard raised an eyebrow and smirked as he saw the reaction his words received. "I'm sorry, what was that, granddaughter? I couldn't quite hear you."

Elsa's eyes briefly flashed white. "You. Leave. Anna. Out. Of. This."

"Or you'll do what, exactly?"

In one fluid motion, Elsa rose to her feet, fists clenched at her sides. If looks could kill, Runeard would most certainly be dead, regardless of his true nature. "I will not warn you again."

The former king's expression changed from amused to stern, returning Elsa's glare. "Mind your tongue, witch. You are speaking to a king."

The white glow overtook Elsa's eyes completely as the rising snow began to swirl around her. The ice on the walls of the cave began to thicken. " _Your_ rule is over, Runeard," she declared. "I am Queen Elsa of Arendelle. And you will go nowhere near my sister."

"Such disrespect." Despite the threat from the powerful woman before him, Runeard seemed rather unconcerned, shaking his head at her words. "Hopefully your sister remembers her place better."

With an angry cry, Elsa lunged towards Runeard, firing a powerful blast of ice from her hands. Maybe she couldn't deconstruct him, but she could certainly trap him, contain him within so much ice he would never be able to--

A powerful shockwave shook the cave as Runeard essentially backhanded Elsa's ice beam, sending it veering off to the side, blasting into the wall and creating a rather large hole. With inhuman speed, Runeard lunged at Elsa, who barely managed to scramble out of the way in time. Turning around, she fired off another blast at the echo, but he dodged the attack, surging towards her. She quickly raised a wall of ice in front of him, but he effortlessly bust through it, sending chunks of ice flying everywhere.

_I have to get out of here_ , Elsa thought in a panic as she tried to defend herself from the... ghost?... of her grandfather. _Have to get to Anna. Have to warn Anna. Have to keep Anna safe._

She raised another wall, then another, but Runeard destroyed them without even breaking a metaphorical sweat. Her attempts were increasingly futile, but what else could she do? Finding herself backed up against the damaged wall, she saw the former king speed towards her, and unleashed a powerful blast of ice to at least push him back, if nothing else. Unfortunately, Runeard struck back, punching the ice with his fist as soon as it reached him, sending the beam back at Elsa, blasting her with her own power. Elsa let out a pained groan as her own blast hit her in the gut and sent her smashing through what was left of the damaged wall. She rolled across the icy floor of a new, darker chamber, one she would have never even guessed was there. She didn't even realize she was skidding towards a ledge until it was too late. Rolling over the side, Elsa managed to reach out and quickly grab the edge with her hand, just barely stopping herself from plunging... she wasn't sure how far down. She couldn't even see the bottom from where she was.

Her elation at having saved herself from falling was quickly done away with as she heard the sound of approaching footsteps. Reaching the edge, Runeard smirked as he watched Elsa struggle to hang on for dear life.

"Oh, Elsa..." he said, shaking his head as he knelt down by the edge. "What trouble have you gotten yourself into now?"

"Get away from me," she growled at him, gripping the edge as tightly as she could. "And stay away from Anna! She won't fall for your lies."

Runeard let his lips curl into a malicious grin. "Oh, I'm afraid that she will," he taunted her, standing back up on his feet. "We both know she has a bad habit of that."

Already Elsa was erecting a pillar of ice to act as a platform beneath her, planning to lift herself back to the ledge and try to attack her grandfather again. But just as the ice began to touch her feet, Runeard lashed out with a vicious kick to her face, stunning her and sending her careening back, plummeting off the edge and into the cavern's dark depths. She regained her wits mere seconds before hitting the floor below. She started to generate a pile of snow beneath her, but was only able to summon a little of it before making impact. It was enough to save her, but the landing still hurt.

_Cold_. The thought ran through Elsa's dazed mind as she lay there for a moment, trying to recuperate from the kick and the crash landing. _So cold._

She wasn't sure how long she'd been laying there, but finally, Elsa was able to pull herself up to her feet. Shaky at first, but she was slowly regaining her strength. She looked around to see that she was standing in a cold, dark, seemingly endless void. She looked up at the ledge she'd fallen from and was about to lift herself up with her magic, when she heard Runeard's voice again. She panicked and struck a defensive position, but when she saw the source of the voice she realized it was not the same evil man she had been facing just moments prior, but another harmless snow echo as she'd seen before in the main chamber. This one was of Runeard speaking with one of his advisors.

_"...You see, the dam will weaken their lands, so they will have to turn to me."_

The advisor nodded as he listened to his king.

_"They will come in celebration and then we will know their size. And strength."_

Elsa began to follow the two figures as they spoke with one another. She tried to listen to what they were saying as best as she could, but she was having trouble focusing on anything other than how ungodly cold it was.

_Cold?_ she suddenly realized. _Why am I cold...? How...?_

She couldn't focus on that realization for very long as she and the two echos were starting to be surrounded by echoes of the joyous Northuldra, whom Runeard began to address. Elsa looked around at the crowd, unsure as to just what was about to unfold.

_"As you have welcomed us, we welcome you. Our neighbors. Our friends."_

Elsa heard an eerily familiar crackling sound. She looked down at her hands... Ice. They were coated in ice. Heavy clouds of icy vapor came from her mouth each time she exhaled.

_My hands... I... what?_ Elsa shook her head as she tried to understand what was happening. _I'm... freezing? No. No, that can't be..._

She had to leave. Whatever secrets lay down here would have to wait until she returned after thawing out and recuperating.

_"King Runeard, the dam isn't strengthening our waters, it's hurting the forest. It's cutting off the North--"_

The voice of the then Northuldra elder caught her attention. She turned to look at him and saw him speaking with Runeard, away from the festivities. Despite everything within her screaming for her to leave, she stepped closer towards the pair, ignoring the crackling sounds as her body moved.

_"Let's not discuss this here,"_ Runeard interrupted the Elder. _"Let's meet on the fjord. Have tea. Find a solution."_ Reluctantly, the Elder nodded his agreement.

_S-so cold..._

Elsa turned away from their meeting to focus on getting out, but as soon as she did, she was faced with the Northuldra Elder kneeling in a peaceful, almost meditative position as he prepared his tea, awaiting Runeard's arrival on the fjord. Elsa watched with horror as Runeard approached from behind, unsheathing his sword, preparing to bring it down on the Elder's neck.

"NO!" Elsa screamed, reaching out for the Elder and... not taking a single step. Catching herself, she looked down and gasped in terror at what she saw: Her legs were now solid ice. And the ice was rising, quickly consuming her body, just as once had happened to her sister. Elsa struggled and tried to fight it, tried to use her magic to reverse the transformation, but even her power was nothing compared to... whatever this was.

For a split second, her thoughts went to her sister. With a heavy heart, she realized that the last time she would ever see her beloved Anna was as she disappeared down a hill in a boat of Elsa's own making. That her last act as a sister was to push Anna away from her.

Again.

Elsa reached out for help that wasn't coming as the ice reached her head.

"Anna...!"

The misty vapor of Elsa's final word escaped from her mouth as the ice finally consumed her completely, turning her from a once powerful queen into a solid statue of ice, victim of Ahtohallan's dark, ancient magic.


	2. Chapter II

"...And did you know that turtles can breathe through their butts? Bizarre, right?"

As Olaf chuckled after reciting his latest trivia fact, Kristoff let out a quiet, yet annoyed grumble. An irritated expression on his face, he turned his head to glance at Sven, who had a similar look on his own furry face. The two knew Olaf meant well, that he was trying to distract and amuse them with another round of random trivia, but the snowman had been doing so for the last three hours, a fact that was quickly growing on their nerves. Luckily, Olaf was bringing up the rear of the group, and thus didn't see them share their unamused glances.

"No, Olaf, I must admit, I was not aware of that," Kristoff said, trying not to let the situation get to him. "I will now never look at turtles the same way again. Thank you."

"Any time!"

With their only clue being 'north,' the three of them made their way through a path in the cursed forest, trying their best to catch up with Elsa and Anna, even though they knew they likely wouldn't. But what else could they do? Sit around the Northuldra camp and twiddle their thumbs as they waited? They had to try.

Sven could sense Kristoff's frustration and grunted at him, gently nudging his arm with his snout. Kristoff looked down at the reindeer and could tell from the look in his eyes that he was trying to comfort him. Kristoff gave him a look.

"'Don't beat yourself up, Kristoff,'" the former ice harvester spoke in the voice he always used for his reindeer. "'The plan was to stay at the camp until morning. It's not _your_ fault they left early and didn't even tell you!'"

"I appreciate the sentiment, buddy, but yes, it _is_ my fault," Kristoff responded... to himself, causing Sven to frown. "If I hadn't been so worried about my stupid proposal and let Ryder distract me with his stupid reindeer ritual, I would've been there when the girls left the stupid camp! This... quest, or whatever, was really important to Anna and I tried to make it all about me." Kristoff sighed, letting his head droop. "I'm so stupid."

Sven groaned sadly and nudged Kristoff's arm again. Olaf frowned slightly as he heard Kristoff venting and spoke up.

"Kristoff, I know things seem bad right now, but you're a good person," the snowman told him. "You've helped Anna through some really bad times and yeah, she's a little wrapped up in this whole transformation journey right now, but she really loves you! I don't think one case of being distracted and not thinking clearly is gonna change that."

Slowly, Kristoff began to smile. "Thanks, Olaf. I really appreciate--"

"Even though, let's face it, this was probably _the_ absolute worst time for you to be distracted and not think clearly."

Kristoff's face immediately dropped back into its previously soured expression, with Sven mirroring the action as the two of them started to turn around and face the snowman. As soon as their eyes fell upon him though, they widened in shock, with Kristoff gasping.

"Olaf, what's wrong with you?"

The snowman chortled at Kristoff's question, giving him a playful _'oh, you!'_ look. "Oh, Kristoff, that's not the first time you've asked me that!"

Kristoff shook his head. "No, I'm serious, what is wrong with you? Look at your snow!"

"My snow...?" At first, Olaf raised an eyebrow in confusion, then did as Kristoff told him. His confusion only increased as he looked down at his body and realized the snow that made up his 'flesh' was no longer solid and tightly packed as it normally was. Instead, it was growing increasingly softer. Slushier. Beads of water were rolling down his body, onto the dirt of the forest floor. "I'm... melting?" he said quietly, as if trying to work out what was going on. His coal buttons and carrot nose were beginning to sag downward.

"Melting? It's not that warm out here," Kristoff noted. Indeed, the night air was nice and cool. He looked back down at Olaf. "Besides, I thought Elsa made it so you _can't_ melt."

The snowman nodded as he continued to watch himself deteriorate. A few of his twig hairs fell from his head to the dirt below. "...I'm melting. The magic in me is fading." Olaf spoke the words softly, more to himself as he was starting to understand what was happening.

Kristoff's concern and confusion were quickly starting to grow. "Wait, what?"

Slowly, Olaf looked up at the ice harvester, fear and realization obvious in his icy eyes. "Kristoff? I don't think Elsa is okay."

Kristoff's eyes widened as alarm filled his head. "What? No. If Elsa's not okay, then that means Anna..." He knew there was no way Anna would let anything happen to her sister, which could only mean... His train of thought was cut short as Olaf suddenly collapsed to the ground, barely managing to catch himself with his hands.

"Olaf!" Kristoff and Sven rushed over to him, Sven watching worriedly as Kristoff knelt down and scooped Olaf into his arms. Lifting him up, Kristoff spotted a nearby rock and made his way over to it, sitting down on it as he cradled Olaf in his arms. "It's alright, I've got you."

Wearily, Olaf smiled and nodded. "That's good..." Two of Olaf's coal buttons fell from his torso to the ground. His left arm went limp and fell through his liquifying body before falling off completely. "I hope Elsa and Anna are okay."

Kristoff sniffled and tried to put on his best comforting smile, but failed. "I... I'm sure they are, buddy."

Sven, clearly understanding what was happening, slowly approached and comfortingly nuzzled Olaf with his snout. The snowman put on as brave a face as he could for the reindeer, weakly reaching up with his remaining arm and petting Sven's head.

"Hey, Sven... You always did like my nose, didn't you?" he asked the reindeer with a tired smile. "You know, if you want, you can have it when... when..." Olaf didn't even have the strength to finish the sentence. Sven frowned at the sight, glancing up at Kristoff, hoping he could do something, anything.

"Hey, don't you talk like that," Kristoff insisted, tears welling in his eyes. "It's gonna be okay, alright? _You're_ gonna be okay. We're gonna find the girls and go home and everything's gonna be back to normal."

The snowman's eyes closed as he whispered back to him. "Yeah... normal... Kristoff?"

"What is it, buddy?"

"Please find Anna and Elsa. As long as they're safe... I'll be okay."

Kristoff nodded, his tears falling at last. "I promise."

In less than a minute, Olaf was gone.

Kristoff remained on the rock, his face wet with tears as Olaf's twigs and coal lay on his lap and at his feet, which were surrounded by a puddle of melted snow. A few feet away, Olaf's carrot nose lay on the ground. A distraught Sven couldn't help but stare at it for several long moments before finally rearing his head back and letting out a mournful howl.

For a long time, Kristoff was silent. Finally, he wiped the tears from his face and looked forward, determination in his eyes. Bending down, he gathered up Olaf's carrot, coals, and twigs, putting them away in his satchel. He turned and faced Sven, his voice firm.

"We need to find the girls," he told the reindeer. "Now."

With that, Kristoff began to march down the same path they were walking before with newfound vigor. Sven nodded at Kristoff's words and quickly began to follow behind him.

* * *

The Troll King, known to only a select few as Grand Pabbie, smiled wearily as he overlooked the large crowd of people. The wise sage was getting on in years, but he was more than happy to help tend to the citizens of Arendelle as they were forced to live on the outskirts of their home town. In his mind, it was the least he could do, as he had always felt bad for the unintentional role he played in the royal sisters'... unfortunate upbringing. Whatever they needed of him, he would do whatever he could to provide it.

He watched as his fellow trolls, his numerous children and grandchildren, brought the Arendellians various supplies. Kai, Gerda, and the rest of the castle staff helped deliver the needed food and blankets as well. Things were going as well as they could be, he supposed. He just hoped, whatever the presence in the Enchanted Forest was, that Anna and Elsa would--

Pabbie's eyes widened.

" _Elsa._ "

The feeling hit him hard and fast. Elsa... Ahtohallan... No, it couldn't be. Elsa was powerful. Quite possibly the most powerful being he had personally ever encountered. There was no way she--

Pabbie was struck by another sensation. This one much closer. Turning away from the crowd, he gazed in the direction of the North Mountain.

"No..."

* * *

The effects of Elsa freezing solid had finally reached Arendelle. Within the Ice Palace, the enormous snowman affectionately called 'Marshmallow' by Olaf had felt the loss of his creator and stopped in his tracks. Slowly, the creature lifted his head, looking out through one of the palace's windows, to the sky outside.

"Elsa...?"

Despite being a fearsome twenty foot tall monster, the fear within his voice was obvious. That's when he noticed the trickling sound. At first, he wasn't quite sure what was causing it, but he spotted the cause soon enough: Water was beginning to run down the walls as they started to melt. His unease growing, Marshmallow raised his left arm and looked at it. Already his snowy flesh was beginning to turn to slush, just as Olaf's had. The snow creature's eyes widened.

Before he could make a move, the sound of what sounded like screaming children filled the palace. Turning around, Marshmallow watched as the numerous Snowgies stampeded into the room, screaming in fear. Many of the tiny snowmen had already been reduced to lifeless puddles even before making it to the foyer.

Despite his own body softening and dripping down onto the icy floor, Marshmallow's protective instincts kicked in and he approached the Snowgies. With one step, Marshmallow stumbled to the floor, his right leg having burst into a puddle of water as he stepped down on it. Reaching out for the little ones, Marshmallow managed to corral the remaining Snowgies in his arms, helpless to watch as even more of his family melted away into nothingness.

"Don't cry... Don't cry..." The giant snowman tried to comfort his little brothers to no avail.

More and more water ran down the walls as they melted and fell away. The upper levels of the palace were already gone. Completely overwhelmed and unable to fight the oncoming end, Marshmallow cried out desperately.

" _ELSA...!_ "

Marshmallow's voice echoed throughout what was left of the structure. Within minutes, the once majestic blue and purple Ice Palace - and everything inside it - was gone. A lake's worth of water was now spilling down the North Mountain, splashing down violently and flooding the valley below.

* * *

Grand Pabbie was finding it hard to breathe. His mind was racing. Clutching his chest, he looked around for something, anything nearby. Spotting a tree stump a few feet away, he stepped towards it and leaned against it as he tried to recuperate. At this point, some of the other trolls were starting to notice his distress and began gathering around him.

"Grand Pabbie, what is it?"

"What's the matter?"

"What's wrong, Grand Pabbie?"

The old troll lifted his hand, trying to get the others to give him room. Some of the castle staff noticed what was going on and started trading concerned glances with one another. Cautiously, Kai approached him, with Gerda trailing close behind him.

"Mr. Troll King, sir?" he asked, uncertain. "Are you alright? What's wrong?"

After a moment, Pabbie let out a heavy breath, then lifted his head, looking at the man. The sadness in the troll's eyes was immediately obvious.

"It... It's Elsa." Grand Pabbie's eyes closed. "She's gone."

Kai and Gerda let out gasps of shock, the latter putting her hand over her mouth. A few of the nearby citizens had overheard the troll and gathered closer.

"Gone...?" Gerda asked shakily.

Pabbie sighed in sorrow. "I'm so sorry."

Around them, several citizens silently lowered their heads in respect for their fallen queen. Close by, Oaken removed the cap from his head, holding it to his chest.

* * *

Her way lit only by a torch she had made for herself, Anna sighed as she walked along the path, watching as the light of the torch's flame flickered against the cave walls.

"Okay, Anna, you've got this. You've been heading down this path for about thirty minutes now, so clearly this leads to an exit somewhere and then you can-- OH COME ON! _Another dead end?! REALLY?!_ "

Anna closed her eyes and let her head fall back as she out a loud, aggravated groan, finding herself facing yet another of the cave's many walls. Turning away from it and muttering several unladylike words under her breath, she started making her way back to the main path of the cave. Determination fueled her, but also... anger.

"Stupid Elsa," Anna grumbled as she ducked under a stalactite. "How dare she. Just because she's the one gifted with magic ice powers, she thinks she can go bossing me around and throwing me down a hill in a boat..." She sighed. "They're _my_ parents and kingdom, too." She noticed that she was approaching the cave's main path again, at which point she'd have to start from scratch. She frowned as she had nothing to do but work through her own thoughts. "I'm not some random girl off the street, I'm the Princess of Arendelle, darn it. I swear, as soon as I see her again, I'm slapping some sense into her..."

Stepping back onto the main path, Anna shivered, reaching up and rubbing her arms with her hands, careful not to touch herself with the torch. "Geez, when did it get so cold in here...?" she wondered. Taking a few steps forward, she noticed a faint blue glow coming from one of the branching paths up ahead. Putting that together with the sudden chill, Anna tilted her head, uncertain. "Elsa...?"

Approaching the entrance to the tunnel, Anna watched as the glow grew brighter and the cold grew colder. _That's Elsa, alright _, she decided, increasing her gait. Arriving at the entrance and stepping into it, Anna decided to not even give her sister a chance to defend herself.__

"I have some serious words for you, lady! You have no idea--" Anna stopped midsentence, interrupting herself with a gasp.

The source of the glow and the cold were not her sister. In fact, it wasn't even a human. Anna watched as an impossibly lifelike snowman was being constructed from the ground up. As she watched, she vaguely registered that the snowman was wearing royal Arendelle attire. Seconds later, the snowman was complete. Despite her shock, she immediately recognized its face.

"...Grandfather?" In spite of her better judgment, Anna stepped closer to the snowman to get a better look. "King Runeard... It can't be."

Did the snowman just move?

Runeard smiled. "It can be, granddaughter."

Anna let out a squeal of surprise and leapt backwards, her arms flailing as she landed butt-first on a nearby rock. Looking around, she noticed a stalagmite sticking out of the ground nearby. Grabbing the tip, she tried to rip it off so she could use it as a weapon. "Don't make me hit you with this stalactite! Or stalagmite! I forget which one is which!" She finally realized it was a pointless endeavor and held her torch out to defend herself. "Ugh! Wh-what are you?!" she demanded in a panic.

Runeard smiled. "Anna, I'm not here to hurt you. It's me, your grandfather. King Runeard."

Anna's jaw fell open and she shook her head as she tried to process the situation. "You are a snowman," she said finally, unable to form any other thoughts at the moment.

Runeard chuckled and nodded. "Well, yes. Yes I am."

Anna narrowed her eyes at him. " _Why_ are you a snowman?" she asked. "And how are you even alive? ... _Are_ you alive?"

"I don't know," he answer her truthfully. "I think the magic of Ahtohallan has kept me... well, my spirit... alive all this time. I guess this form was just the best it could do."

"Wow," Anna said. Standing up from the rock, she cautiously approached her grandfather and started looking him over. "Kept alive as a magic snowman. That's incredible." The name he spoke suddenly registered with her. "Wait, you've been in Ahtohallan all this time...?"

"I have," he said with a nod. "I just met your sister not too long ago."

Anna's face immediately soured as she heard the mention of Elsa. "Ah. I see. So she made it to Ahtohallan, then. How'd that go?"

Runeard raised an eyebrow as he took note of Anna's instant change in attitude. "Did I touch upon a sore subject...?"

"It's a long story," she said. "Elsa and I are in the middle of a... sibling dispute," she told him with an annoyed grin.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Runeard replied. After looking around for a moment, he gestured for Anna to follow him. "Here, let's get you out of this cave. I know the way out." Eager to finally make her way out of the dark, damp surroundings, Anna gladly followed close behind.

After a few minutes, curiosity got the better of Anna. "So... how did you and Elsa get along? I imagine she was shocked to find a living snowman that she wasn't responsible for. Did she find the answers she was seeking?"

"She was a little shocked, yes," he answered with a chuckle, nodding as he guided Anna through another of the cave's tunnels. "And I wasn't able to follow her all the way through Ahtohallan, but I think she found out more about her past and her magic than even she knew she was looking for."

"That's... great," Anna said bitterly, imagining what assortment of amazing discoveries she must've missed out on. "I'm really happy for her."

Watching her closely, Runeard nodded. "Yes, she seemed quite pleased when she left."

Anna stopped in her tracks, glaring at her grandfather. "Wait, Elsa already left Ahtohallan? How long ago?"

"Oh, quite some ago," he told her. "She's no doubt made it back to the mainland by now."

For a moment, Anna just stood there blinking, dumbfounded. Letting out a sudden growl of frustration and anger, she started clenching her hands, her fingers outstretched and curled, as if imagining someone's neck within them. Grumbling under her breath again, she began to march forward through the tunnel, quickly passing Runeard as she wanted to find the exit even sooner now.

Runeard quickly caught up with Anna, keeping pace beside her. "She didn't come back for you," he said with realization. "Anna, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to--"

"No, no, it's okay," she responded, dismissing his apology with a wave. "If that's how _her Majesty_ wants to play this, then two can play at that game."

Out of Anna's line of sight, Runeard smiled. "What even happened between you two?" he asked her.

Anna grumbled. "We realized the next course of action to try and free the forest was to go to Ahtohallan. But Elsa decided 'oh, no, Anna, it's too dangerous,'" she mocked, waving her hands about. "And so she tossed me in an ice boat and sent me sliding through the forest, far away while she went to Ahtohallan on her own! Like throwing me down a hill in a speeding boat I can't control is safe!"

"Elsa is right, you know. The journey to Ahtohallan _is_ a perilous one," Runeard told her. Anna turned to face the snowman and was about to open her mouth to protest, when her grandfather continued. " _However_ , you are not a defenseless child. You are the Princess of Arendelle and you are clearly capable of handling yourself if the need arises. After all, _you_ are the one your people will look to for leadership and guidance if something were to happen to your sister. She should have more faith in you."

Anna stared at him, her mouth open and her eyes wide. "YES! Exactly! Thank you!" she cried happily, gratitude surging through her. "Just because I don't have magic powers doesn't mean I'm some useless idiot! I mean, if it weren't for me, Elsa wouldn't even be _alive_ right now! I saved her life!"

The two of them stopped momentarily as they spotted the exit, sunlight peering in from outside. Runeard smiled at the sight, then turned to face his granddaughter. "What do you say we go remind her of how strong you are?" he asked, holding his hand out to her.

"I say that's a wonderful idea," she said, returning the smile as she took his cold, snowy hand. A bit more walking, a little climbing, and before too long, they finally emerged from the cave's dark depths, Anna blinking as her eyes struggled to reacclimate to the sunlight. After a moment, she took a deep breath and looked around. They were on a raised area that gave them a good look over most of the forest.

Releasing Anna's hand, Runeard stepped towards the edge. "Ah, there it is." Hearing him speak, Anna turned to see what he was looking at, which turned out to be the dam. "Glad to see it's still there."

"Yep. Still standing strong after all these years," Anna told him as she stepped up beside him, watching him as he looked out over his last act as king.

Finally, Runeard turned to his granddaughter. "Anna, come back to Ahtohallan with me."

Anna's eyes widened when she heard him. "Wait, what? Why? I thought Elsa already got everything she needed?"

"Not everything is about Elsa," he reminded her. "There are things here _you_ should see. Things about _your_ past, _your_ family. Maybe there are answers here that _you've_ been seeking."

Anna bit her bottom lip as she thought it over. "I don't know..." she said quietly. "I really ought to try and find Elsa and get back to Arendelle..."

Runeard looked straight at her, gently placing his hand on her shoulder. "From what you told me, Elsa didn't seem to have as much trouble deciding to leave _you_ behind to go to Ahtohallan for _her_ answers."

His words hurt Anna's heart... but she couldn't deny that he had a point. When it came down to it, Elsa _had_ ditched her pretty much immediately, hadn't she? And if Elsa had no qualms about treating Anna like some unwanted luggage, why should Anna feel bad for not immediately running after her?

"Anna, this body of mine... It won't last forever," Runeard informed her, interrupting her thoughts. "It's been a strain keeping it together this long. It's already starting to melt. If we're to get you to Ahtohallan, we need to go now."

Anna nodded to herself, then looked up, offering Runeard a weary smile. "Lead the way, grandfather."

Runeard smiled and nodded as he turned towards the trail that would lead them down from the area in front of the cave, onto the main path of the forest. As they started to head down the path, the wind rustled through the trees. One particularly strong gust sent a trail of leaves through the air.

Anna narrowed her eyes and tilted her head. "Gale...?"

Runeard turned and looked at Anna as Gale came down and began to swirl around her.

"What is it, girl?" Anna asked with a chuckle as the Wind Spirit blew upward, lightly causing Anna's hair to flap about.

"Anna?" Runeard asked, watching her with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, grandfather! This is the Wind Spirit of the Enchanted Forest!" Anna introduced him with a smile as the living wind flew around her torso. "We call her Gale."

Runeard's expression flattened. "We don't have time for this. We need to get moving if we're to get you to Ahtohallan."

"I know, but--"

"No 'buts,' Anna. You want to show your sister she was wrong to stop caring for you, don't you?"

"Well, yeah, but--" The princess stopped midsentence and narrowed her eyes at him, unsure. "What did you say?"

"What we were just talking about. Elsa clearly doesn't care for you if she was willing to toss you aside as she did," Runeard clarified, giving his granddaughter an uncertain look. "Now let's get going." With that, he took another few steps down the trail. For a moment, Anna didn't follow him and stood there in silence before speaking.

"No. You're wrong," Anna said finally, glaring at him.

Surprised that she wasn't following him, Runeard turned to face her. "I'm sorry?"

"Look, I know more than anyone else what a pain in the rear end Elsa can be sometimes. And yeah, I _am_ furious with her right now. But she loves me more than anything in the world. Everything she does, as stupid and misguided as it may be, she does to protect me, to keep me safe. Because she loves me."

Runeard seemed uninterested in her declaration. "Of course, my apologies," he told her dismissively, nodding. "Now, shall we get moving?"

"No. I don't think we shall," she responded, looking at the snowman reconstruction of her grandfather in a new light, thinking over her whole interaction with him. "Thank you for getting me out of the cave, really. But I think I need to meet up with Elsa and get the forest and Arendelle settled before I can go to Ahtohallan."

For a moment, Runeard stood there in silence, his back turned to her. Finally, he let out an aggravated sigh. Anna raised an eyebrow, uncertain how events were about to unfold. His back still turned, Runeard quietly asked himself "How is it you _both_ turned out to be just as much trouble as your mother?"

Anna's eyes widened as a variety of emotions surged through her. "I'm _sorry?_ " she asked, her face unable to choose between shock or anger.

Runeard turned to face his granddaughter, clearly done with trying to play things nice. "If you refuse to come to Ahtohallan willingly, then I guess I'll just have to make sure you get here myself." With that, he began marching towards her.

With a slight yelp, Anna jumped backwards. "Hey! ...Y-you stay where you are!" she ordered, holding her torch - which she had yet to think of extinguishing - out to defend herself. With an angry growl, Runeard backhanded the torch, sending it flying out of Anna's hands, the dirt putting out the flame on contact. Anna took several steps back and found herself backed up against the edge of the area they stood on. It wasn't lethally high, but she was sure to break a bone or two if she fell.

Reaching down to his belt, Runeard took hold of his sword's hilt and unsheathed it, revealing its blade to be pure ice. "At least you're easier to deal with than your witch sister," he commented with a smirk.

Anna went from scared from potentially falling off the cliff, to angry at hearing her grandfather's words. "What did you do to Elsa?!" she demanded.

"You'll find out soon enough," he commented, his free hand reaching out to grab the redhead.

Before Anna could think of defending herself, Runeard was struck with a ball of purple fire, sending him flying back and crashing into the outer wall of the cave. Anna gasped in shock, then looked around for the source of the flame. Another fireball quickly leapt towards her... and dispersed, revealing it to be the Fire Spirit. The lavender salamander looked up at Anna, almost smiling as it saw her.

"That was a mistake," Runeard growled, standing back up from the attack, though his chest was now a mess of melted snow. Tightly gripping his sword, he advanced on the two.

Standing protectively in front of Anna, the Fire Spirit hissed angrily and ignited its flame once again, spitting another fireball at Runeard. The snowman batted away the blast with his sword, and when the salamander fired at him again, he jumped aside, dodging it. By now he was close enough to strike, bringing his sword down. The Fire Spirit jumped to the left, Anna to the right, causing Runeard's blade to strike soil. Now on a rock behind him, the salamander unleashed another blast, but Runeard once again deflected the fireball with his sword and made a beeline for Anna.

Grabbing the extinguished torch, Anna swung it at Runeard, but the former king brought his sword down, slicing the stick in half. The Fire Spirit leapt at the snow echo, but Runeard backhanded the salamander with his free hand. The small creature skidded across the dirt until it hit a rock, stunning the animal.

"Hey! Leave him alone!" Anna cried, tackling Runeard, who merely laughed at the attempt. Bringing his knee up into Anna's gut, he knocked her to the ground. She clutched her stomach as she grunted and coughed. Despite her pain, she glared up with hatred at the former king.

"I rue the day Arendelle has to look to you for leadership," Runeard commented, shaking his head.

The powerful form that surged up between Runeard and Anna appeared so quickly that the ghostly king didn't even register its appearance at first. It got his attention, though, as soon as it let out with a thunderous neigh, flailing its legs in his face.

"NO--!"

Runeard's head exploded into a cloud of snow as it was kicked by the hooves of the horse-like Water Spirit. Another kick from the kelpie sent Runeard's headless body flying backwards, crumpling to the ground. With a gasp, Anna quickly got to her feet and backed away from the Water Spirit, looking between it and the defeated snow body of King Runeard in shock. "I, uh, wow. Uh, thank you... Water Spirit, I'm guessing? But I must be going now..." she said with a nervous chuckle as she backed away towards the path.

The horse neighed and immediately ran over to her, blocking her from the path, shaking its head and snorting.

Anna became angry, placing her hands on her hips. "Hey! What's the big idea?! I need to go! My sister needs me!"

The Water Spirit shook its head again. This time, it lowered its head, bending down slightly.

Anna understood what it wanted, but raised an eyebrow at it. "Wh-- You want me to ride you?" she asked, unsure.

The beast nodded.

"Why would I--" Slowly, realization hit her. "You know where Elsa is, don't you?"

Once again, the Water Spirit nodded.

Her mind racing, Anna realized she didn't have much of a choice. She touched the liquid body of the horse before her. It felt like normal water, but somehow she knew she'd be able to ride it without too much trouble.

The Water Spirit suddenly reared back and neighed, scaring Anna. She quickly turned around and gasped in shock as she saw the headless snow body of Runeard rising back to its feet, its hand still tightly clutching its icy sword. Reaching out for her with its free hand, the snow echo stepped towards her. Before either Anna or the Water Spirit could react, the Fire Spirit suddenly skittered in front of them both, violet flames erupting from its body. Rearing its head back, the salamander belched forth a powerful fireball. The blast hit Runeard's body in the chest before it could react and this time the snowman exploded into chunks of snow and water, taken out for good.

Anna blinked for a moment. Looking down at the salamander as it extinguished itself and returned her gaze, she smiled at the Fire Spirit. "Thanks, little guy," she said, reaching down and gently patting it on the head. "Ow, ow, hot," she hissed, quickly withdrawing her hand and blowing on it. Turning back to the Water Spirit, she watched as it lowered itself for her once again. With a nod, she slowly managed to climb up onto the majestic creature's back. It felt odd, sitting on a horse made of water, but it was manageable. The horse looked back at her as she found the reigns of ice Elsa had lassoed him with. Taking firm hold of them, Anna looked the Water Spirit in the eyes and nodded.

"Take me to my sister."

With a neigh, the Water Spirit blasted off like a firework, disappearing deep into the forest.


	3. Chapter III

Elder Yelena sighed as she watched out over her people. The Northuldra camp was in a low key panic as they had spent a good chunk of the night and morning taking down their dwellings and packing up their belongings.

Sad expressions on their faces, Ryder and Honeymaren approached their leader.

"Everyone's almost ready to head out," Honeymaren told the elder. "It took a while to get all the kids gathered up. They're all settled and ready to go as soon as we are, though."

Yelena chuckled softly at the thought of trying to get all the active little children together in one place and what a nightmare it must've been. She nodded at Honeymaren's report, then turned to the girl's brother. "The reindeer?" she asked him.

"All loaded up and ready to go," Ryder informed her as he slung his bag over his shoulder. "I saved a few for the elderly, like you asked."

"Good, good," Yelena said, nodding slowly. "Why don't you two go on ahead and make sure your family is all set? I'll be along in a moment."

The siblings nodded and turned away from the elder, heading back into the crowd of packing Northuldra. Yelena sighed again as she looked around at her tribe. This was a good area of the forest. She had been hoping they could stay here, at least for a little while longer. But with the Earth Giants active and more aggressive than before, they knew there was no way they could remain here and stay safe.

"Elder Yelena."

The Northuldran woman recognized the voice of the person approaching her and turned to face him. She nodded a greeting to him. "Lieutenant."

Lieutenant Mattias nodded in return as he approached Yelena, one of his fellow Arendellian soldiers following close behind him. He offered her a look of sympathy. "So you're really going to be evacuating your home?" he asked her.

The elder woman sighed. "We don't have much choice," she told him. "If the Earth Giants are going to be claiming this territory, it'd be suicide to stay here."

Mattias nodded. "Where will you go?" he asked her.

"We'll be heading to the Lycan Meadows," she informed him. "They're far enough away from the Earth Giants' path that we should be alright." She paused for a moment, mentally debating with herself. Finally, she sighed, then continued. "You should come with us," she offered. "It's not safe here."

The lieutenant gave her an appreciative smile, but shook his head. "As tempting as that sounds... My men and I should stay here. We need to be where Queen Elsa and Princess Anna can find us when they return. But thank you, Yelena. Truly. I wish you luck finding a new place to call home."

"Thank you, Lieutenant," she said with a nod, giving him the best smile she could muster, given the situation. "Hopefully they return soon and you can all go home to your kingdom."

Nodding farewell to one another, the two leaders turned from each other and went their separate ways, heading back to their respective factions.

* * *

"Ah! Ahhh! Ahh! Will! You! Slow! Down! _Aaahhhhh!_ "

Anna's voice was shaky as she held on for dear life, the Water Spirit blasting across the ocean at speeds normal horses wouldn't even be able to comprehend. The four legged beast galloped across the stormy seas, leaping from and over the crashing waves as it made its way to Ahtohallan. The spirit had already displayed impressive speed before, but now with the urgent mission of getting the princess to her sister, it ran even faster, approaching the magical island even quicker than it normally would. And while Anna appreciated the efficiency, it was quite difficult to hold onto the creature's reigns once it was moving at full speed.

She tried to distract herself by thinking about something else. All that really came to mind was how weird and mentally uncomfortable it was to be sitting on a horse made of water. Every time she came back down from bouncing up it felt like her butt was landing in a puddle. She looked up to see that they were rapidly approaching the legendary Ahtohallan. She gasped as best as she could, given the bumpy ride.

 _Whoa... Ahtohallan is a glacier..._ she realized. Her face dropped into an annoyed frown when the second realization hit her. _Of course it's ice-related. It couldn't just be an in-general magic island with sand and palm trees, no, it's gotta be a giant block of ice._

Shortly after she had the thought, the Water Spirit reached the icy shores of Ahtohallan, coming to a stop. Catching her breath from the intense ride, Anna looked out to the cave entrance in the glacier's outer wall. With a look of determination, she glanced down at the kelpie's face.

"Thank you, Water Spirit. I never could have made it this far without you." Anna began to dismount the aquatic creature, when it suddenly neighed in protest, keeping her from climbing off. "Whoa, boy!" she called out, trying to keep her balance. "Hey, stop it!"

The creature again took off like a shot, carrying Anna to the entrance and charging deep into the ancient cavern.

* * *

Ahtohallan had changed. Not that Anna would be aware of the differences, of course, as she had never seen it in its natural state. The once serene walls of ice that occasionally shone with blue and purple light to help guide people through it now pulsated with a dark, sickening green. Whereas before the walls were nice and smooth, now sharp icicles jutted out in every direction. The Water Spirit had to take care to keep Anna safe from them as it carried her though the glacier's corridors.

"I hope Elsa's okay," Anna said worriedly as she looked around at her ominous surroundings. "This place doesn't look... right." Her supernatural companion snorted, apparently sharing her sentiment.

Thankfully, Elsa's earlier trek through Ahtohallan had made things considerably easier for the two. As Anna shivered slightly from the cold, the Water Spirit ran through the halls, determined to make its way through them quickly. Upon reaching the chamber with the bottomless pit, the horse came to a stop.

"Okay. It looks like there are some steps for us. Sort of," Anna noted, looking at the pillars of ice Elsa had earlier raised for herself. "If we're careful, we should-- HEY NOT YET!"

Anna squealed as the Water Spirit leapt forward, its hooves barely touching the ice pillars as it leapt from one to the other. Anna held on as tight as she could and within seconds they had passed. Bounding through the next room where the once fallen ice columns stood, the pair were quickly approaching the main chamber, deep within Ahtohallan's core. The entrance to the chamber was soon within view... and the Water Spirit suddenly slowed down and came to a halt.

Raising her eyebrow, Anna looked down to the beast. "Come on, Water Spirit. We're almost there," she said encouragingly, slightly confused.

The horse snorted, shaking its head.

Anna frowned slightly. "This is as far as you go, huh?"

The spirit nodded.

Anna sighed. "Alright. I understand." Swinging her leg around, the princess climbed off the creature and dropped down onto her feet. With a smile, she turned to face the majestic beast. "Thank you, Water Spirit," she said, gently running her hand through its watery mane. "I literally could not have gotten here without you."

The Water Spirit neighed, then collapsed into a large puddle, leaving no trace it was even there. Turning towards the entrance to the main chamber, Anna steadied herself, then marched forward. She wasn't sure what she was about to find in the next room - all she could see from her current vantage point was more of the ominous green light - but she was prepared to deal whatever it may be. She had to find her sister.

* * *

Stepping into Ahtohallan's main chamber, Anna gasped. She was not as prepared as she'd thought for what waited for her inside. Though there were fewer of them now, snow echoes continued to make their way around the cavern, still reenacting the memories they personified. Anna took a moment to register the sight, recognizing herself, Elsa, their parents, Olaf, Kristoff and Sven... But soon she saw the man she was looking for. Well, the snowman.

In the center of the room was a massive, swirling vortex, looking like a tornado, comprised of the same dark green energy that now pulsated through Ahtohallan's walls. Obscuring the ceiling were stormy, almost aurora-like clouds that occasionally crackled with the energy they contained.

Standing at the base of the vortex, watching it intently, was King Runeard.

"Welcome, granddaughter."

 _So much for the element of surprise_ , Anna thought to herself, grumbling as she stepped further into the room, her eyes never leaving the snow echo.

"I must admit, after the little show you and your animal friends put on in the forest, I didn't think you'd come here." Runeard watched as the vortex churned before him.

"Yep, that's me. I'm just full of surprises," Anna responded snarkily. "Now where is my sister?"

Laughing softly, Runeard finally turned away from the vortex and faced his granddaughter. "You young people. Always in such a rush. Never willing to slow down. Take your time. Wait. Now, me, for example... I've been waiting. I've waited for thirty four years here in this icy Hell for something, or someone, to come along and set me free. And now that I am this close, I will not stop until I've been released."

Anna's face contorted in confusion. "'This close' to what? What are you talking about?"

"You and your sister are exactly what I need to get out of here," Runeard told her, narrowing his eyes. "You two being of my bloodline, combined with her magic, should grant me a new body, one capable of leaving this place and resuming my duty as King of Arendelle."

Anna's eyes widened in genuine shock. Out of all of Runeard's potential goals, she honestly hadn't been expecting that one. "Okay... Didn't see that coming," she admitted. "And what exactly is all... _that?_ " she asked, gesturing to the enormous vortex in the center of the room.

"Oh, this?" Runeard asked with an amused tone of voice, briefly glancing back at the emerald tornado behind him. "This is the ancient dark magic of Ahtohallan. I've been working on channeling it. But even this limitless power won't be of any help to me if I don't have a body I can leave this place with."

Anna nodded to herself as she finally realized the scale of the situation. If she could just find Elsa and get out of here, then Runeard would be stuck here forever, unable to achieve much of anything. She quickly steeled herself and gazed upon Runeard in her usual 'tough girl' stance, crossing her arms. "And I'm guessing from the fact that Elsa isn't here right now, standing beside you and telling me what a great plan this is, means she's already shot down your crazy scheme."

"What's wrong with crazy? I love crazy," Runeard responded, smirking when Anna silently fumed with recognition. "And yes, Elsa is quite the stubborn girl, as I know you're well aware," he told her. "Said she didn't know _how_ to do it, wasn't even sure if it _could_ be done, even after she's brought who knows how many snowmen to life. So I put her in time out until she learns her lesson and remembers where her loyalties _should_ lay."

It infuriated Anna, hearing the man of snow speaking about her sister like that. "That is enough out of you!" she shouted, stamping her foot down. "I don't care about your cra-- insane resurrection scheme! I may not be queen, but I'm more Arendelle's ruler than _you_ are! And I am hereby ordering you: Tell me where Elsa is RIGHT. NOW."

A stream of the dark green energy sprang down from the vortex, striking Runeard in the back. The living memory seemed to absorb the mystic energy into him, a green glow surging through his body, visible just beneath his snow. The glow quickly traveled through him to his hands, at which point Runeard made a grasping motion with his right fist. The same green light suddenly appeared around Anna. Before she could react, the energy lassoed her and she let out a yelp of surprise as it lifted her up off the ground and floated her over to her grandfather, stopping directly in front of him.

"What _is it_ with you two?" Runeard demanded with a growl. "Don't either of you know how to function without the other?"

Anna was clearly frightened, but refused to look away, glaring at him defiantly. "Y-you didn't answer m-me."

Runeard narrowed his eyes in rage.

"You want to know where your precious sister is?" he asked her. "Let me show you." With Anna still in his floating, magical grip, Runeard marched across the main chamber, stepping in through the shattered wall and into the dark memory chamber, bringing Anna with him. Stepping up to the edge, he positioned Anna so she could take a good look at the expansive darkness below. "I'm pretty sure she's down there somewhere."

Anna gasped at his words, then turned to face him furiously. "What did you do to her?!" she demanded. "If she's hurt, I swear to you I'll--"

" _Watch your tone, girl,_ " Runeard interrupted. "Elsa's the one who wanted answers to what happened in the Enchanted Forest thirty four years ago. If she couldn't handle what she found... That's on her."

"Elsa's strong enough to handle _anything,_ " Anna fired back. "Including you."

"Why don't you go find out?" he asked her with a sneer. "I'll let you two out once you're a little more cooperative."

The green magic around Anna suddenly dispersed as Runeard dropped her like a brick off the ledge, letting her fall. The princess screamed as she plummeted, ricocheting with a grunt off a lump of ice sticking out of the cliff side. As she rapidly approached the floor, she unwittingly managed to land in the same pile of snow Elsa had created to cushion her fall. Unfortunately, the impact was much rougher for Anna than it was for her sister, and she was barely conscious from the sudden landing.

With a groan, Anna tried to lift herself up, but at the moment that felt like an impossible task. Looking around with blurry vision, Anna thought she spotted a lithe, icy blue figure nearby.

_...Elsa...?_

Her sister's name was the last thought Anna had before unconsciousness claimed her.

* * *

"It's too bad Mattias decided to not come with us," Ryder said as he walked along the forest path. "He turned out to be not such a bad guy after all."

"Yeah, but he's got his own duties to take care of," Honeymaren said. "Just as we have ours." With a sly grin, she handed one of the satchels she was carrying to her brother, forcing him to carry it.

"Hey!" Ryder complained, causing his sister to laugh in response.

Before he could retort, a strange vibe filled the air. It was an uneasy, uncomfortable energy. The entire tribe felt it and stopped in their tracks, even the reindeer. Everyone looked around, unable to pinpoint just where it was coming from. After a moment, the strange tension in the air dissipated just as abruptly as it came. Almost immediately, Honeymaren and Ryder glanced at each other, then ran up to the front of the tribe.

"Elder Yelena!" Honeymaren called out. "What was _that?_ "

Yelena looked as concerned as they were. "I don't know," she told them. "Something is happening. Something wrong. Evil. Something..." The Northuldran leader stopped for a moment, as if to think of the right word to describe what she felt. The ground shook suddenly, as if hit by a brief but violent earthquake. All the birds in the area cried out as they left their trees and took to the skies. Seconds later, another quake. Then a third.

Yelena's eyes widened. "No..."

"Elder Yelena, what is--" Ryder didn't even have a chance to finish his question.

"RUN!"

With a mighty roar, the Earth Giant made its presence known. The Northuldra began screaming and scattering as the enormous beast advanced towards them. Each of its footsteps shook the forest, threatening to knock the Northuldra off their feet. The reindeer dispersed, disappearing into the forests in all directions.

"No, no, no!" Ryder cursed.

"What is it doing here?!" Honeymaren cried. "Did it follow us??"

"Quiet!" Yelena shushed her as the group of Northuldra they were in disappeared amongst the trees. High above them, the Earth Giant looked around, trying to figure out where the small creatures had vanished to. It had seen the reindeer run off into the trees, but had no interest in the four-legged creatures. Instead it sought out the humans, slowly scanning the area for them.

Ryder leaned in close to Honeymaren and whispered "It's gotta give up at some point, right?"

Its head twisting back and forth, the Earth Giant couldn't find its prey. It let out a frustrated growl that echoed across the forest. It started to turn away from where the Northuldra were hiding, but before they could breathe a sigh of relief, the golem turned back, swinging its outstretched hand down low, tugging and ripping several trees out of the ground, exposing the tribe and leaving them without any cover to run to.

Elder Yelena looked up in horror at the stone beast towering over her. She was barely even aware of Honeymaren and another Northuldran grabbing her arm and running with her.


	4. Chapter IV

The Earth Giant's frustrated growl echoed across the Enchanted Forest.

Back at their camp, the Arendellian soldiers instantly leapt to their feet, grabbing the hilts of their swords on instinct.

"Earth Giant!" Mattias called out. The soldiers looked out in every direction, scanning the area, trying to pinpoint the source.

"Sir!" one of them reported. "Over there!"

The five of them looked out and spotted the Earth Giant standing in place for a moment, seemingly not doing much of anything.

"What is it doing...?" another soldier wondered.

As if in response, the Earth Giant suddenly spun around, its massive hand tearing out trees and reaching for something below the soldiers' line of sight.

"It's attacking something," one of the soldiers commented.

It took a second before realization struck Mattias. "The Northuldra!" he gasped. He paused, then looked at his fellow soldiers. "Let's get moving, men."

His soldiers looked at him uncertainly.

"Sir, we can't do anything against that monster!" one of them protested.

"We can't just leave the Northuldra to die, either," Mattias told him. "Not after we separated on peaceful terms and Elder Yelena even offered us safe passage out of the Earth Giants' territory. That's not Arendelle's way." The lieutenant sighed. "At least it shoudn't be."

One by one, the other soldiers realized their leader was right and nodded, clanging their swords against their shields in solidarity.

"Now let's move, men!" Mattias repeated.

This time his soldiers nodded. "Yes, Sir!"

* * *

The Earth Giant's frustrated growl echoed across the Enchanted Forest.

"Oh, what now?" Kristoff groaned as he and Sven emerged from a treeline on an elevated section of the forest. They immediately spotted the Earth Giant making its way through the trees and stopped in their tracks.

Sven let out a nervous grumble.

"Of course we'll take the long way around," Kristoff reassured him, nodding. "Come on."

Before they started to turn away, they saw the Earth Giant swing down at the trees, uprooting several as it tried to reach something underneath them.

Kristoff narrowed his eyes in confusion. "I don't get it," he muttered. "What is it do--" Realization hit him. "The Northuldra! The soldiers!" Kristoff turned to Sven, who had realized the situation at the same time. "We've gotta get to them! Come on, buddy!"

Leaping onto Sven's back, Kristoff grabbed hold of his reins as the reindeer sped off into the forest, heading towards the Earth Giant as fast as his four legs could carry him.

* * *

Slowly, Anna's eyes began to flutter open. She groaned as she started moving her arms, grimacing as she began lifting herself up off the snowy floor. Her body ached, but it didn't feel like anything was broken, miraculously. Resting herself up on her arms, she began looking around at her new surroundings. The room was a featureless black void. Not much in the way of landmarks or anything. There seemed to be trees around her... Glowing trees made of light. That didn't really help much.

A pained grunt escaped her throat as she managed to lift herself up into a sitting position. At least the cold permeating throughout Ahtohallan helped her deal with the aching. Her vision was still a little blurry though. As she rubbed her eyes, she spotted the same blue figure she'd caught sight of earlier before passing out.

"Ungh... Elsa...?" she muttered groggily as her vision started to correct itself. Blinking, her vision had cleared up enough to recognize that, yes, she was indeed looking at her sister. "Elsa!" Managing to pull herself up, Anna began slowly towards her older sibling. "I'm so glad I found you! And I am so mad with you right now!"

But as Anna grew closer to her sister and her vision cleared even more, she realized something was wrong. Elsa wasn't answering her. In fact... she wasn't even moving.

"...Elsa?"

Anna's vision had restored completely, giving her the first proper look at her sister. She gasped in utter horror.

Elsa was frozen solid.

For a moment, Anna couldn't even move, her mind unable to process what she was looking at. She prayed her vision was still wrong from the fall. But what she saw wasn't changing. Her mind wasn't coming up with any answers... except...

"ELSA!"

She finally snapped out of her stupor with a harrowing scream. From her prone position she broke into a full on sprint, running towards her sister. She closed the gap between them within seconds and stopped a few feet away from the blood-chilling sight, her jaw slowly dropping as she tried to convince herself that what she was looking at wasn't real.

Elsa. Her arm and hand outstretched. Complete and utter terror on her face. Frozen solid.

"No..." Almost instantly, tears began to well in Anna's eyes, her lip trembling . "No. No, no, nonono..." She ran to her sister and placed her hands on Elsa's arm, only to immediately withdraw them due to the intense cold radiating from her. "No, please, no..." Anna cried. She looked around the room, hoping to see something, anything, that could be of help, but saw nothing but darkness. Anna started hyperventilating as she turned back to her sister. "ELSA, PLEASE!" Tears started flowing freely down Anna's face, though by the time they reached her chin they had started to freeze over.

_Please..._ Anna thought as she cried, leaning against her sister despite the chill. _Please, not like this... Not when I could've saved her... Please..._ Looking up at Elsa's face only caused Anna's tears to fall harder. Her sister's eyes were wide, her final look of fear frozen on her face forever.

"Elsa... I'm sorry... I'm so, so sorry..."

Only one other person in the world knew what it was like to go from a flesh and blood human being to a stone cold block of ice and that person was Anna herself. She vividly remembered what it felt like for her skin and muscle and bone to be replaced bit by bit by the merciless ice. And the cold... The deathly, unforgiving cold. She had been helpless to do anything about it but let the icy, chilling darkness overcome her until she was gone completely. She wouldn't wish such a hellish fate on anyone. Not even Hans, as much as she hated him. And to think that her own sister had to suffer that same fate, scared, alone, trapped at the bottom of some godforsaken cave... Anna wrapped her arms around her frozen sister and leaned her face against hers, openly sobbing now.

_Wait._

Some time had passed before the thought suddenly pierced through Anna's sorrow. Making sure to gently pry her face away from Elsa's, Anna stepped back, looking at her. She wasn't one hundred percent certain - No one ever could be when magic was involved - But perhaps her former trauma held the key to this situation. Anna bit her lip as she tried to think, tried to formulate a plan. Finally, she realized there was no real way to plan out what she was about to do. Wiping the frosted tears from her face, she stepped towards her sister once again. "Here goes everything..."

With a deep, shaky breath, Anna held onto Elsa's less outstretched arm. Closing her eyes, she gently touched her forehead to her sister's. Exhaling slowly, she tried to focus. "Elsa... Please. Come back to me. I love you, Elsa. I need you. I... I can't do this on my own." Another tear fell down Anna's freckled cheek. "You're stronger than this, Elsa. You can fight this. Don't let this stupid glacier take us away from each other." Anna tightened her grip around her sister's arm. "Please, Elsa. You're the only family I have left. Don't you leave me. I don't know what I would do with myself if I didn't have you beside me. You're my sister. I love you." Anna's breathing was shaky and uneven as she held onto her sister, hoping, praying. "I love you..."

Nothing.

_Just wait..._ Anna thought, trying to remain calm. _It didn't happen immediately with you, Anna. Just be patient._

Nothing.

_This magic might be stronger_ , she tried to convince herself. _Plus, it's a lot colder in here..._

Nothing.

A mournful wail escaped Anna's throat as her grip on Elsa loosened and she collapsed to the floor. The princess began openly sobbing, her chest heaving. She tried clutching at Elsa's skirt, but its now solid nature made that impossible. She was now truly without hope. Without Elsa, all was lost. The forest. Arendelle. Herself. Opening her teary eyes, Anna looked around at the blackness that surrounded her, breathing shakily as her visible breath puffed from her mouth.

" _I've seen dark before, but not like this  
This is cold, this is empty, this is numb  
The life I knew is over, the lights are out  
Hello darkness, I'm ready to succumb_"

Wiping her nose with her sleeve, Anna lifted her head up, gazing at her sister through teary eyes.

" _I follow you around, I always have  
But you've gone to a place I cannot find  
This grief has a gravity, it pulls me down  
And a growing sorrow thunders in my mind_"

Anna took in a slow, shaky breath.

" _Can there be a day beyond this night?  
I don't know anymore what is true  
I can't find my direction, I'm all alone  
The only star that guided me was you_"

Anna wiped away a heavy flow of tears as she gazed up at Elsa.

" _How to rise from the floor  
When it's not you I'm rising for?  
I can't do... the next right thing...  
When it's clear that everything will never be the same again_"

Devastated and spent, Anna leaned her head against her sister's legs, letting whatever tears she had left run down her cheeks unimpeded, her chest shaking from the combination of her crying and the cold. _Elsa is gone_ , she thought. _Arendelle is doomed. I... I probably won't survive for very long down here._ She sniffled. _I'm so sorry, Kristoff. I've been so bad to you lately... I hope you can find a way home..._

Her chest still shaking, the Princess of Arendelle closed her eyes, ready to find out if the cold or starvation would claim her first.

"...Anna...?"

Anna opened her eyes and glanced around. Was she starting to hallucinate already? That sounded like-- She craned her head back, looking up at the statue of ice behind her.

She was greeted by the warm, blue eyes of her sister.

"ELSA!"

Anna immediately forgot about her pain and sorrow and discomfort as she all but leapt up onto her feet, spinning around so she could face her sister. As she looked at her, she could see the ice retreating from Elsa's body, restoring the flesh and blood and bones that it had stolen from her. Soon, there was not a single trace of it left within her. Like Anna herself had been once before her, Elsa was reborn.

"Elsa...?" Anna asked quietly, wanting to make sure this wasn't some kind of cruel trick.

"Oh, Anna," Elsa said, a mixture of happiness and sadness saturating her voice. She went to reach out for her sister, to embrace her, but as soon as she started to move her legs, she discovered they were still weak from being frozen, and she collapsed down onto the floor.

"Elsa!" Anna cried out. She didn't care if this was a trick or not and hurried to her sister's side. Kneeling down in front of her, she helped get her sister into a similar position so she could look at her. For a moment, the two just looked at one another, studying each others' faces. Faces neither of them ever expected to see again. Suddenly, Anna began to cry, completely overwhelmed by the violent surge of emotions she'd been dealing with ever since landing in this pit.

Elsa gave her sister a look of concern. Reaching over, she cradled Anna's face in her hand. "Anna, what is it?" she asked, brushing some of her sister's hair away from her face. "It's okay. I'm okay! I'm here with you now. We're together."

With an angry cry, Anna lashed out and smacked Elsa's upper arm _hard_ , eliciting a pained cry from the queen. " _Ow!_ " she hissed. "Anna, what the--"

"YOU SHUT ME OUT! AGAIN!" Anna sobbed. "YOU PROMISED! YOU PROMISED WE WOULDN'T LEAVE EACH OTHER'S SIDE AND THEN YOU THREW ME DOWN A HILL LIKE GARBAGE!"

The outburst made Elsa's jaw drop. "A-Anna, I... I never meant to--"

"NO!" Anna interrupted her. "We lost each other for _thirteen years_ , Elsa! And it _hasn't_ been that long since we found our way back to each other! I can't believe you... that you'd _do _that..." Anna took a moment to sniffle and wipe away her tears.__

By now, Elsa's eyes were welling up with tears of her own. "I'm so sorry, Anna," she said, her lip quivering. "I wasn't trying to throw you away." She reached out, taking Anna's hands in her own. "I love you! I didn't want to hurt you. Again. I just wanted you safe. Which is nowhere near me..." Elsa lowered her head, not wanting to look at her sister, knowing how badly she'd hurt her.

Anna immediately reached up and took Elsa's face in her hand, lifting it so she could look her in the eyes. "Elsa, being _separated from you_ is what's bad for me. And despite what you may think, it's bad for you too! Look what happened to you! You... you di--" Anna stammered, unable to even get the word out. She wiped away another tear. "When I found you like that..."

Elsa's tears finally started to fall as she realized what a horrifying experience that must have been for her sister. "Oh, Anna," she cried, reaching out and wrapping her arms around the princess, holding her tight as Anna cried against her shoulder. "I am so, so sorry."

Anna wrapped her arms around Elsa and held her just as tightly. "We're a team, Elsa," she said shakily. "Family. Sisters. We're at our strongest when we're together."

Elsa sniffled and nodded. "You're right. I just.. I'm always so scared..."

Anna leaned back so she could look at her sister, giving her a sympathetic smile. "I know you are. And I know it's not always easy to overcome that." She reached up and brushed some of her sister's white hair out of her face. "But you have to trust me, Elsa. To believe in me, like I believe in you. I'm a grown woman now. Just because I don't have magic powers like you doesn't mean I can't take care of myself."

Elsa nodded, wiping away her tears. "I know you can. You're strong, Anna. Stronger than I'll ever be, powers or no powers." She looked Anna in the eyes. "I promise you. No more separations. No more pushing you away."

Anna gave her a look. "No more ice boats."

Elsa laughed tearfully, nodding her head. "Definitely no more ice boats."

Anna gave her sister a smile and leaned in, hugging her tight, an embrace that Elsa returned just as tightly. The two of them held each other in that hug for a good long while, sighing contentedly as they finally released each other and pulled away. For a moment, Anna looked at her sister, finally no longer wrought with sorrow. "So," she said finally, reaching over and lightly stroking Elsa's freely flowing white hair. "This is a whole... thing," she said with a chuckle. "Not sure if I like it as much as the braid-and-blue-dress combo, but..."

Elsa laughed, shaking her head. "This time it wasn't my idea," she told Anna. "Well, the dress wasn't. I let my hair down, though." She chuckled softly, then remembered the task at hand. "Anna, do you know what's going on out there?" she asked her sister.

"I assume you're referring to the frosty reincarnation of our grandfather?" Anna asked, her face flat. "Yeah, wonderful guy, isn't he? He's already tried to kill me twice."

"Me too," Elsa told her. "That's how I ended up down here." Another fact suddenly registered in Elsa's mind and she slightly recoiled, shaking her head as if to try and settle her thoughts. "Wait a minute, how did you even _get_ here?"

"The Water Spirit brought me here," Anna told her. "To save you."

Elsa smiled briefly before her face became serious again. "The Water Spirit. Is it still here?"

"No," Anna said, shaking her head. "I don't think he could enter the main chamber."

Elsa cursed under her breath, trying to think. Rising to her feet, her legs finally strong enough to carry her again, she looked down to her sister. "We're going to have to face him again, you know."

"I figured as much," Anna said as she joined Elsa in standing up.

Elsa started clasping her hands together. "Anna, if he manages to get out of here... Manages to get back to Arendelle..."

"I know. We won't let him." Stepping forward, she offered her hand to her sister. "Together?"

Elsa looked at her sister's hand and nodded. "Together." She took Anna's hand and held it tight. Keeping her hand on Elsa's, Anna tilted her head and gave her a questioning look. Elsa realized what she was after. "I promise, Anna!" she insisted. " _Together_. No more shutting out or pushing away, even if things get dangerous. We do this as sisters."

Anna smirked. "Then I pity that old man."

* * *

Sven's hooves stamped against the forest floor as the reindeer carried Kristoff to the Northuldra. The Earth Giant loomed larger and larger in the distance as the two of them grew ever closer. They were near enough now they could spot a few Northuldrans hiding amongst the trees. "We're almost there, buddy," Kristoff urged Sven. "We've just gotta get past him! You can do this!" Sven nodded and rushed forward.

Completely oblivious to the approaching duo, the Earth Giant kept swinging its fists about, uprooting tree after tree as it attempted to find its prey. As one enormous hand swooped down, taking out another row of trees and rocks, Kristoff and Sven just barely managed to duck and slide underneath, feeling the wind as the Giant's hand passed by overhead. Making their way into the trees, they approached the group.

"Kristoff!" Ryder said in shock. "What are _you_ doing here?!"

"Nevermind that, we've gotta get you guys out of here!" Kristoff insisted. "Sven and I can get its attention. Once that's done, you all head in the other direction and run as fast as you can!"

"What? That's suicide!" Honeymaren protested.

"She's right. I won't let you put your life in danger for us," Elder Yelena told him, shaking her head.

"Look, I'm not crazy about it, either," Kristoff told her. "But it's the only way we can get this thing off your back long enough for you to escape. Now don't worry about us. Sven is fast enough to outrun that thing, aren't you buddy?" he asked, ruffling the side of Sven's neck. The reindeer nodded affirmative.

"Kristoff, you can't just--" Ryder began, but Kristoff cut him off.

"We're done discussing this! We've gotta get moving before that thing attacks again," the ice harvester insisted. "Now everyone get ready. On the count of three, Sven and I will--"

The group turned around, panicking as the sound of movement in the foliage caught their attention. They prepared to defend themselves, when suddenly Lieutenant Mattias and his men emerged.

"Lieutenant," Yelena gasped, genuinely shocked. "What are you--"

Mattias looked her in the eyes, determination on his face. "Arendelle doesn't leave its allies to die," he told her. His men behind him nodded in unison. "Now what is going on? Why is that thing after you?"

"I have no idea," the Northuldran Elder told him. "In all my years, I've never seen an Earth Giant this aggressive before. This goes far beyond a simple defense of their territory. This is an outright attack."

Unseen by the group, high above the trees, the Earth Giant's eye spots briefly crackled and pulsed with an eerie green glow.

* * *

"So, wait, _you're_ the Fifth Spirit? But what does that even mean? Are you like the protector of the Enchanted Forest now?" Anna was understandably confused as she and Elsa rode on a large, snowflake-shaped platform of Elsa's creation. The platform rose high into the air, lifting them up and out of the pit, towards the same edge they fell from before.

Elsa wanted to answer her sister's inquiries, but she found all she could do was shrug. "I honestly don't even know. It all happened so quickly! I didn't get a lot of explanation." Elsa furrowed her brow. "Or any explanation, really."

"Huh." Anna stood there for a moment, staring at nothing as she took this all in. She finally looked back at Elsa and smiled. "Well, hey, that's just something else we can figure out together," she promised her sister. She paused, then added "That is, once we're done with this whole 'evil grandpa' thing."

Elsa smiled back at her little sister, putting a gentle hand on her shoulder and nodding. "Definitely."

Moments later, the giant snowflake reached the edge of the pit. Elsa and Anna hopped off of it and onto solid ground, Elsa dissolving the snowflake into powder as they abandoned it. The two sisters occasionally glanced nervously at one another as they left the pit behind them, approaching the large hole in the wall, on the other side of which awaited Runeard.

Elsa hesitated for a moment, knowing how badly things went for her when she faced Runeard the first time. How resistant he was to her powers. There was no guarantee that things would be any different this time.

Anna looked over at her sister and immediately saw the worry she was struggling with. "Hey," she said softly. Reaching over to Elsa, she took her hand in hers, interlocking their fingers. "We've got this. You and me? We're unstoppable."

Elsa smiled. While her concerns weren't gone entirely, Anna made them feel inconsequential. She nodded, holding Anna's hand tight. "Unstoppable."

Anna nodded, then grinned mischievously. "Let's go kick this guy's ice."


	5. Chapter V

"Alright, does everyone know the plan?" Mattias asked, looking around at the group.

"I don't know what was wrong with _my_ plan..." Kristoff grumbled, crossing his arms as he pouted.

"We're the Royal Guard of Arendelle," Mattias told him. "If anyone will be acting as bait, it will be us. We can use your plan if ours fails."

The ground shook as the Earth Giant angrily punched the soil, growing more and more frustrated and impatient.

Mattias looked back at his soldiers. "Are you ready, men?"

The four soldiers nodded, then spread out, heading into separate directions. Mattias gestured for everyone to be quiet as they waited for his men to reach their positions. Their wait was suddenly cut short as the tree they were hiding under was suddenly ripped up out of the ground and lifted into the sky. The group stared up in shock as the Earth Giant tossed the tree aside and glared down at the tiny humans.

"Its eyes..." Yelena gasped, immediately noticing their strange green glow.

The Earth Giant raised its fist into the air.

"RUN!" Kristoff screamed.

The group scattered, just barely missing being crushed as the Earth Giant slammed its fist against the forest floor, sending tremors everywhere and creating a crater underneath. The Giant brought its next fist down, very nearly striking Ryder had Mattias not grabbed his shirt and tugged him out of its impact range. Raising both of its hands into the sky, the Earth Giant prepared to bring them back down and smash everyone underneath.

A loud clanging sound suddenly caught the Earth Giant's attention, causing it to pause before bringing its hands down.

Roughly a hundred feet away from the main group, one of the Arendelle soldiers was clashing their sword against their shield in order to grab the Earth Giant's attention. The plan was successful, as the sound irritated the stone beast, causing it to lower its arms and turn away from the group, heading towards the soldier. The soldier shook with every step the Giant took as it approached, stopping their clanging as soon as it was close enough. As the golem reached down to find the source of the noise, another soldier, even further away than the first, started clanging their own sword. The stone giant immediately turned to the new sound and started heading towards it.

The main group watched for a moment as the Earth Giant followed the noise the soldiers were creating. Once it was obvious it was falling for their bait, Mattias turned to the others. "While it's distracted, we get to the dam. Once we're up on higher levels of the forest, it shouldn't be able to reach us. It doesn't look like the climbing type. Let's move."

The small group nodded and followed the Lieutenant as he led the way towards the dam.

* * *

In the massive main chamber of Ahtohallan, Runeard continued to let more and more of the mystical vortex's shimmering energy flow into him, absorbing the ancient magicks. As the former king let the mighty power flow through his frosty form, he had generated a vision from the emerald energy. It was similar to the ones Grand Pabbie was known to create, but this one was far more detailed and lifelike. It was also not a peek into a potential future; Runeard grinned with an evil glee as he watched the Earth Giant hunting the Northuldra only mere moments earlier. Despite how much he was enjoying watching the sight, however, he was not oblivious to the two women entering the room.

"Granddaughters."

Elsa and Anna stood strong as they heard him greet them, knowing they wouldn't have been able to surprise him, no matter how much they would've liked to. They gasped as they noticed Runeard's vision and saw the Earth Giant on the attack. Anna was the first to respond.

"What is this?" she demanded. "You're controlling one of the Earth Giants?"

"'Control?' Oh, no, no, no. Nothing that direct," Runeard answered honestly as he continued to watch the scene unfold. "Although I think my tapping into Ahtohallan's power is upsetting the balance of your pretty little forest. Your spirit friends seem to be going off the deep end."

Behind him, the vision showed the Earth Giant attacking something much closer to the ground. A moment later, the targets of its aggression were seen within the green energy.

"The Northuldra! The soldiers!" Elsa gasped.

"KRISTOFF!" Anna cried, desperation in her voice. Snarling angrily, she took a step towards the snow echo, but Elsa managed to reach out and grab her sister's upper arm, holding her back.

"It's a pity," Runeard said, finally turning to face the sisters, stepping away from the vortex towards them. "Mattias was a fine soldier, too. For him to have sided with those savages, against his own kingdom..." The snow man shook his head in disappointment before looking up at his granddaughters. "But I suppose being crushed by the hands of an Earth Giant is a fitting death for a traitor."

"You're an even worse monster than I thought," Elsa gasped, shaking her head in disbelief as she clutched Anna. "I thought you hated the Northuldra because you blamed them for your death... But I saw what really happened. You caused all this! You built the dam specifically to weaken the land and anger the Spirits! You killed the Northuldra leader in cold blood!"

" _What?_ " Anna gasped as she turned and looked at her sister, her mind reeling at the revelation that their own grandfather had caused such grave misfortune for so long.

"He had it coming! They all do!" Runeard growled, clenching his fist. "They were ignorant fools who dared to defy a king! They had to be reminded of their place. They spoke so highly of their precious Forest Spirits, treating them like gods. What better way to show the Northuldra their place than weakening those gods?"

Both girls were staring at their grandfather with hatred in their eyes.

"Now, despite everything that has happened between the three of us, I really don't want to have to kill either of you," Runeard said as he stepped down from the platform surrounding the vortex and began approaching them. The two sisters started stepping back, Elsa placing a protective arm over Anna. "You are my granddaughters. The current rightful rulers of Arendelle. I truly would prefer for us to work together, to reunite our royal family, and to strengthen Arendelle into the greatest kingdom the world has ever known. However, if you ultimately decide to refuse me..." He narrowed his eyes at them. "Once I master Ahtohallan's power, I won't need your participation. I'll simply _make_ you create a new body for me."

Elsa's eyes widened at the threat, recalling how Ahtohallan had briefly assumed command of her powers when she first arrived. Anna felt her sister tense up and looked at her, then returned her attention to Runeard, her lip curling into a snarl. "You will not touch her," she told him firmly.

"Oh, Anna, are you threatening me?" Runeard asked with a chuckle. "How adorable."

"Grandfather, please," Elsa tried, giving diplomacy one last attempt before things went the way she was fairly sure they were about to. "It doesn't have to be like this."

Runeard smirked, amused by her effort. "Oh, but I'm afraid it does. I'm not stopping until I leave Ahtohallan and--"

With an angry scream, Anna ran straight for the snow echo, startling both him and Elsa. Despite his surprise, Runeard reacted quickly, grabbing his sword and withdrawing it, swinging it towards the advancing princess. Anna immediately dropped, narrowly avoiding the icy weapon as she slid past her grandfather on the floor, feeling the chill from the blade as she passed it. Still swinging his sword, Runeard had no time to react properly. Getting to her feet, Anna looked up at her grandfather's back.

"ELSA! SWORD!" Anna shouted, extending her right hand, waiting.

The queen was caught off guard, but still responded in an instant, gesturing with her hands and sending a steam of icy vapors towards her sister's outstretched hand. Within seconds, a fully formed sword of ice appeared in Anna's hand.

As Runeard turned to face her, his weapon raised and ready to strike, Anna lunged forward, planting her blade deep into his chest, its tip bursting out his back. Runeard staggered as he felt the weapon sink through his snowy flesh. He fell to his knees, an expression of shock on his face as he futilely stared at the hilt of the weapon that felled him.

Anna similarly stared in shock at the sight. "It worked," she said incredulously, her heart racing. Her face beamed as she suddenly started clapping and bouncing in place. "Oh, I did it!"

Elsa carefully stepped around Runeard and stood beside Anna, watching as their grandfather grew weaker and weaker. Finally, she turned to the redhead. "Anna, _are you insane?_ " she asked, taking her sister's hands in hers. "He could've cut you in half!"

"I know, it was crazy, but it just... It just came to me, y'know?" Anna chuckled slightly, withdrawing her right hand and brushing some of her hair behind her ear. She bit her lip as she looked at her sister. "Please don't be mad."

"I'm not mad, I just..." Elsa finally just smiled and hugged her sister tight. "You did great."

The sound of their grandfather coughing grabbed their attention. "Anna..." Runeard spoke weakly. "I'm sorry..."

The two sisters raised their eyebrows as they looked at him but stayed where they were.

"I'm sorry..." Runeard lifted his head to look at them, a smirk on his face. "...That your impressive display was completely useless." Runeard effortlessly got back to his feet, narrowing his eyes at his granddaughters. The green glow of Ahtohallan's magic surged through his body and Elsa's sword was dissolved and absorbed into his torso, disappearing completely.

"Ohhh that's not good," Anna said flatly, momentarily stunned.

"Now, this..." Runeard's right hand began to shift and extend, growing larger and larger, until a sizable blade of ice sat on his wrist where his hand once was. " _This_ is a sword."

The sisters' eyes widened as he raised his arm high overhead. He brought it down hard, cleaving down into the icy floor as the two of them jumped aside in opposite directions. As Runeard tugged on his arm to pull his blade free, Elsa released a blast from her hands, creating a large chunk of ice around Runeard's hand, freezing it to the floor. Thinking fast, Elsa summoned forth an ice mace, swinging it hard and smashing the spiked sphere across her grandfather's face. Anna ran in, having collected Runeard's original, discarded sword, and leapt up, swinging the weapon down and slicing the snow man's right arm clean off at the elbow. Freed from Elsa's ice, Runeard staggered back, looking at his stump. Glaring angrily at the sisters, more emerald light shined through him and his arm grew back, fully restored.

"Man, come on," Anna huffed.

Anna charged at Runeard again, but the former king unleashed a blast of Ahtohallan's magic from his hand, catching the redhead in the stomach and sending her flying back, crashing to the floor. She rolled into the legs of a Kristoff snow echo, knocking it to the floor and reducing it to powder. Elsa ran at Runeard in a rage for striking her sister, brandishing her mace once again. She managed to land a single blow on Runeard, striking his chest, before he lashed out and grabbed its hilt, wrenching it out of her hands. He bent his arm and prepared to strike her with it, but Elsa quickly dissolved the mace, eliminating its threat. With a growl, Runeard lunged forward, grabbing Elsa by the throat and lifting her off her feet. Creating a dagger out of ice, Elsa brought it down and sliced off Runeard's hand, freeing herself. Before he could begin restoring it, Anna charged and tackled him hard from the side, knocking him to the ground. The princess quickly rolled aside and Elsa glanced up at the ceiling, spotting a cluster of icicles. Gesturing to them, she brought them down, impaling Runeard and pinning him to the ground.

Anna ran over to her sister and stood beside her. The two of them stared as their grandfather was already starting to pull himself up and off of the icicles.

"Anna, this isn't going to work!" Elsa said, starting to panic. "We can't beat him like this."

Anna grabbed Elsa's hand and held it tight. "Elsa, it's okay. We can do this, we'll think of something."

Elsa tightened her grip on Anna's hand, frowning as they watched Runeard work himself further off the icicles. "We'd better think of it soon."

* * *

Mattias led Kristoff, Sven, and the Northuldra away from the Earth Giant as his men continued to distract it by clashing their swords against their shields. "Come on, everyone!" he urged the group. "We're almost to the dam!" He gestured to it with his sword. The enormous structure was only a few hundred yards away now.

Unfortunately, the group hadn't counted on the Earth Giant growing tired of their attempts to fool it. The beast followed their sounds well enough for the first two soldiers, but when the third began clanging their weapons together, the Giant became annoyed with following the noise. When it got close enough to the third soldier, the man stopped smacking his weapons together, and further away, the fourth soldier began creating the sound. This time, however, the Earth Giant wasn't falling for it. Reaching down, the beast grabbed the tree the third soldier was hiding under and ripped it from the ground, revealing the soldier beneath it, who was now gazing up at the monster in terror. The Earth Giant knew there were more humans than just this one. It had been tricked. The massive golem turned its head, looking around behind it. As the fleeing group was currently in a clearing, they were easily spotted, and the titan let out an angry roar.

"It sees us," Kristoff realized. "RUN!"

Furiously, the Earth Giant swung its fist down low, scooping up the ground and sending dirt and rocks and trees hurtling towards the group.

"LOOK OUT!" Yelena shouted. The group stopped fast, allowing the flying objects to soar past them. One of the trees flew far enough and hit the dam. As soon as it made impact, a surge of green energy washed over the entire structure, and the tree suddenly bounced off with such speed and force it flew back far enough to land down behind the group, dirt and leaves flying everywhere.

Despite the advancing Earth Giant, the group stood there, dumbfounded at what they just saw.

"Why is there magic on the dam?" Mattias asked to no one in particular, blinking in stunned confusion.

"That's impossible," Yelena said, just as confused as he was. "That dam was constructed by your king. There's no way he could or would have enchanted it."

A few feet away, Kristoff was having his own thoughts. _It's just like the mist_ , he thought to himself. _Whatever hits it just bounces right off._ His eyes widened as a second thought quickly followed the first. "Ohh... I've got a really bad idea that might work," he announced with apprehension.

The others turned to look at him, some raising their eyebrow.

* * *

Elsa raised another thick shield of ice from the floor, blocking another emerald blast from Runeard and stopping it from hitting her and Anna. The ice began to crack as the magical energy burned against it.

"We can't figure out a plan if we're on the defensive every second!" Anna huffed, clutching an ice sword, its blade broken in half.

" _I'm working on it!_ " Elsa shot back, her mind racing. Before the former king could advance on them, the ice shield sank back into the floor and a massive snowball shot towards him at blinding speed. The orb floored Runeard, though Elsa knew that wouldn't last long. "That vortex..." she said, thinking out loud while she still had the chance to. "That's how he's feeding off of Ahtohallan's magic. If we can shut that down, that would probably stop him...?" She looked at her sister questioningly.

"Hey, you know more about magic than I do," Anna told her, shrugging. "But that sounds like as good a plan as any. Let's go!"

Elsa nodded and the two turned to make their way towards the vortex, but instantly stopped. Runeard was already back up, his body glowing with light as he flew towards the two of them. Reaching up to the ceiling again, Elsa grabbed hold of more icicles with her magic, sending them shooting down towards Runeard like daggers. But he was ready for them this time, catching them with a green glow and redirecting them, sending them flying towards his granddaughters. Their eyes widened before Elsa raised another large wall of ice in front of them. The icicles stabbed into the wall, and while they were stopped, their points still broke through, coming quite close to the sisters' faces.

"We've gotta get to that vortex..." Elsa said desperately, thinking.

Anna's eyes widened. "I've got an idea? Maybe?"

Elsa looked at her.

Runeard stopped directly in front of Elsa's ice wall. "Come on out, granddaughters," he called to them. "This wall can't hide you from me." He received no answer and he narrowed his eyes. "Very well, if you insist on being stubborn..." Turning his right hand into a rather large mace head, he punched the wall, sending several cracks running through it. Rearing back, Runeard punched the wall again, shattering the wall completely. "Now then, as I was--"

The Snow King gasped as an enormous snow monster, very similar to Marshmallow except much, _much_ meaner looking, lunged forward, clutching Runeard within its icicle claws. The beast marched forward, carrying the evil man far from Elsa and Anna, smashing his back up against the wall and roaring in his face. Runeard struggled, smashing at the creature's arm with his mace hand, but the snow golem acted as if it barely even noticed the blows. In retaliation, the monster began to drag Runeard along the wall, violently grinding him against the ice.

"Atta boy, Frostbite!" Anna called out with a smile as she and Elsa made a beeline for the vortex of energy in the center of the cavern. "Remind me never to get on your bad side," she joked to her sister.

Elsa couldn't help but laugh a little as they ran. "It took you until just now to realize that?"

Runeard turned his left hand into a mace as well, and together the two weapons finally began to take their toll on Frostbite's hand. Spinning around, the creature tossed Runeard aside, sending him smashing into a far wall. Runeard shook his head to clear his thoughts and saw the monster charging directly at him. Runeard fired the mace heads off like rockets, hitting Frostbite hard, but the monster pushed through and kept advancing. His hands back to normal, Runeard let out with twin streams of emerald energy at the monster. Frostbite raised its left hand, shielding itself from the blasts, but Runeard didn't let up, and the monster was finding it harder and harder to resist them.

Runeard grinned as he noticed the monstrous snowman having more and more difficulty withstanding his increasing power. "Is this the best you've--" Glancing back to where Elsa and Anna were, he stopped as he saw they were no longer there. Looking around for them, he saw them quickly approaching the vortex. He growled. "NO!" he shouted at them, cutting off his magic and speeding off towards them. Before he could get very far, however, he suddenly found himself lifted high into the air. Frostbite had grabbed his legs and raised him high, then swung him down hard, smashing him face-first into the floor. The impact was so hard Runeard burst apart, sending snow everywhere. Unfortunately, it wasn't too long before the snow started moving across the floor and began to gather.

* * *

"This idea is complete and utter insanity!" Honeymaren protested.

"I know!" Kristoff said as he led to group even closer to the dam.

"There's no guarantee this'll work!" one of the Arendellian soldiers pointed out.

"I KNOW."

The Earth Giant threw a massive boulder at the group, which came down and planted itself into the ground not too far from their left. The impact shook them for a moment before they continued running towards the dam. Soon they reached it, then turned to face the approaching Earth Giant, who glared at them with its green, glowing eyes. For a moment, it just stood there, doing nothing but staring at them.

 _Oh please oh please oh please..._ ran through Kristoff's head as he began to panic, praying he hadn't just led everyone to their deaths.

With another roar, the Earth Giant stepped forward, advancing on the group, reaching out for them.

"No," Kristoff muttered. " _No!_ "

As the Giant got closer, it reached down, ripping another large boulder out of the earth. With a mighty heave, it sent the rock hurtling directly towards the group. It was too close for running to do any good and they all braced themselves for the inevitable impact. With a loud noise, the rock hit the dam. The structure flashed with the same green glow it did before, ricocheting the boulder away from it at incredible speed... directly into the Earth Giant's face. With a grunt, the titanic creature was knocked off its feet and landed on its back. The impact of the falling monster gave the surrounding area a minor earthquake. It took the group a minute to realize that they hadn't actually been crushed to death. Slowly but surely, they relaxed their bodies and opened their eyes, gasping as they saw the sight before them and realized what happened.

The Earth Giant was completely knocked out.

* * *

Elsa and Anna reached the vortex, stepping up onto the platform surrounding it. For a moment, the two sisters simply watched as the green and black energies warped and crackled as it continued to flow, feeding Runeard with its ancient power whenever he needed it.

"This thing is huge," Elsa said as she looked up and down the swirling tornado of magic. "I wouldn't even know where to start to shut it down."

Anna crouched down and looked closely at the bottom of the vortex. From what she could tell, the energy didn't merely start on the chamber's floor, but rather it was emerging from a hole, the entrance to a tunnel originating deep, deep within Ahtohallan's core. "It looks like it's coming out of this hole in the ground," she said, looking to Elsa as she stood back up. "Do you think you could close it off? Cover the hole with ice?"

Elsa inhaled, uncertain, then shrugged. "It's worth a shot," she said, taking a step back. "Stand clear."

Anna quickly did so and watched as Elsa extended her arms and opened her hands, firing powerful twin beams of icy magic at the hole from which the vortex emerged. Unfortunately, the vortex's pull was too much, and instead of forming a cover, the ice was immediately pulled into it and absorbed. Elsa focused, increasing the power of her blasts. A little ice formed around the rim of the tunnel before the vortex absorbed it once again. Elsa groaned as she pushed herself, trying to almost will the hole to freeze, but no matter how hard she tried she couldn't. She collapsed to her knees, momentarily exhausted.

"I can't," Elsa panted, trying to catch her breath. "The vortex is too strong. It just absorbs my magic. I'm sorry, Anna."

Anna knelt down beside her sister and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't beat yourself up. You did your best." She reached in and gave Elsa a reassuring hug.

* * *

For a moment, everyone stood there in disbelief. Finally, though, a sense of jubilation washed over the group and they began to celebrate.

"I can't believe it," Honeymaren gasped.

"Oh, man, Kristoff! That was _awesome!_ " Ryder said, giving the ice harvester a hug and a slap on the back.

Elder Yelena approached Kristoff, a stern look on her face. "That was one of the craziest things I have ever seen in my entire life." Her harsh expression turned into a smile. "And you saved us all. Thank you, Kristoff. It seems you've been blessed even more than your queen has... with supernatural luck!"

Kristoff laughed and nodded, letting out a breath of relief. "Thank you, ma'am," he said, turning and hugging Sven, ruffling his fur. "You alright, buddy?" he asked. Sven grunted and nodded.

Mattias walked up to Kristoff and smiled. "Nicely done. That was insane, but hey, it worked," he laughed. He looked over as his fellow soldiers caught up with the group. "I still think we should head up to the top of the dam, though," he said. "Just in case that thing wakes back up."

"No arguments here," Kristoff chuckled.

With that, everyone followed Mattias and his soldiers as they led them to the path on the side of the dam, leading them to the lake up top.

"Ah, it'll be nice to take a moment to relax and not have to worry about imminent death," Ryder sighed happily.

"Don't jinx us, you goof," Honeymaren laughed, punching his shoulder.

As the group reached the clearing at the top, they found that they were being waited for. Not too far from the end of the path stood the majestic Water Spirit. Down below, circling its hooves, was the Fire Spirit. Gale, the Wind Spirit, blew around lazily above them.

Kristoff, Mattias, and the soldiers were surprised, but the Northuldra let out genuine gasps of shock.

"The Water Spirit..." Honeymaren whispered, absolutely stunned.

"It hasn't shown itself to us in years," Ryder added.

"What are they doing up here?" Kristoff asked, confused.

Yelena gasped. "Their eyes..."

The Water and Fire Spirits' eyes, as well as Gale's leaves, shone with an eerily familiar green glow.

* * *

Releasing Elsa from her hug, Anna looked up at the vortex for a moment, then back to her sister. "Well, what about using it?"

Elsa looked at her sister and raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I mean, obviously the genocidal snowman back there doesn't have any real deep connection to Ahtohallan and he's still able to use its magic," she pointed out. "But _you're_ the Fifth Spirit! Mother thought your powers came from here, right? I feel like _you_ should be able to use its magic easier than _he_ could."

Elsa mulled Anna's words over for a moment, though uncertainty plagued her. "Oh, I don't know, Anna..." she said. "He's had over thirty years to learn how to channel Ahtohallan's power. I still barely even know how to use my own." Elsa looked down at her hands, thinking. Exhaling, she looked up at the vortex. "Still..." It was as good a plan as any. Standing up, she slowly, hesitantly, started to reach out for the swirling green energies.

"Take it slow, Elsa..." Anna warned, standing as well.

Closing her eyes and bracing herself, Elsa stuck her hand into the vortex. The magic around her hand warped and twisted, until suddenly a green energy surge sent her flying back, far from the platform, crashing to the floor.

"ELSA!" Anna cried out, running to her side.

* * *

"Hey, guys," Kristoff addressed the trio of Forest Spirits as he calmly approached them, his hands out in a reassuring, non-threatening manner. "How's it going? What are you guys doing up here?"

None of the spirits reacted as Kristoff approached them. The rest of the group watched in unease as Kristoff tried to communicate with them. "Sorry about your friend over there," he said, briefly glancing back at the still unconscious Earth Giant. "But he was gonna squash us, so we had to do something, y'know? But we're still friends, right? Gale?" He glanced down at the Fire Spirit. "Little guy?" He looked up at the largest of them and offered it a nervous smile. "Uh... Water horse?"

Rearing back onto its hind legs, the Water Spirit let out an angry neigh. The Fire Spirit ignited, its flames now tinted green. Gale expanded and began swirling around the clearing containing her fellow spirits and the humans, acting as a barrier.

Kristoff's eyes widened as he realized the situation. "Oh, not good." He quickly retreated back to the group as the soldiers withdrew their swords and the few Northuldra with weapons got them ready.

The Water Spirit charged forward, barreling into the group and knocking people aside. Leaping around, the Fire Spirit began spitting the occasional fireball at the group. Mattias stepped forward, batting a blast aside with his shield.

"We need to get out of here!" he ordered.

Several of the group turned around and tried to do just that. Ryder was the first one to reach Gale's wind barrier, but her gusts were too strong, and he was knocked onto his back.

"Well, that's not happening..." he groaned as his sister helped him back to his feet.

* * *

"Elsa!" Anna said as she dropped to her knees, sliding across the icy floor to her sister. Reaching down and clutching her upper arms, she gently lifted Elsa and looked at her face, which seemed pained. "Elsa, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm alright, take it easy..." she groaned, managing to pull herself up into a sitting position. "That hurt, though..." she said, holding her head for a moment. "It felt like my powers went into overload."

Anna frowned. "I'm sorry."

"Hey, it's not your fault," Elsa reassured her. "I'm the one that stuck my hand in the stupid thing..."

Elsewhere, Frostbite watched as Runeard's snow coalesced and began reforming his body. Lifting its large foot, Elsa's creation stomped down hard, once again scattering the snow. Frostbite grinned with satisfaction, when it suddenly felt ill. Starting with its foot, a familiar shimmering green light traveled up its leg, into its stomach, chest, head. Frostbite roared in defiance before its roar was suddenly cut off midway.

Hearing the strange noise, Elsa and Anna turned their heads in its direction and saw the large monster standing there, unmoving.

"Frostbite...?" Anna asked.

Jerking its head around, Frostbite let out another fearsome roar, its eyes shining green. " _GRANDDAUGHTERS!_ " Runeard's voice echoed from deep within the monster's throat. Elsa and Anna screamed as they quickly jumped to their feet. Extending his claws, Runeard advanced on the two women. Elsa immediately began firing blasts of magic at her former creation, but he simply batted them aside, causing clusters of icicles to jut out from the floor and walls where they hit. Elsa put her arm across her sister, moving Anna behind her in a protective stance.

" _What's the matter, girls?_ " Runeard taunted, Frostbite's razor sharp teeth exposed as he grinned. In a rather familiar tone, he asked them " _Don't you wanna build a snowman?_ "

Neither Elsa nor Anna were amused by the reference.

" _Now stop being a couple of brats and do as your grandfather tells you!_ " he roared. Claws outstretched, he tore through snow echoes of Hans, Elsa, Agnarr, and Grand Pabbie as he charged towards the girls.

Elsa shoved Anna out of the way, firing off a series of icicles at the monster. They embedded themselves into his snowy flesh, but he showed no reaction. Runeard brought his claws down, intent on catching Elsa's legs, but she rolled out of the way at the last second, allowing his claws to stab down into the floor.

"Elsa!" Anna cried in concern.

Getting to her knees, Elsa gestured with her hands, erecting a series of walls around Runeard one by one. In Frostbite's body, he was too slow to react, allowing Elsa to construct a large box of ice around him, keeping him trapped. Runeard struck at the walls with his claws, large cracks starting to form as he weakened his confinement.

"I'm sorry, Frostbite," Elsa apologized to her creation before waving her hands, creating a massive boulder of ice high in the air.

" _NO!_ " Runeard screamed.

The boulder dropped like a brick, completely and utterly crushing the ice box and everything inside. Watching it for a moment, Elsa nodded, then dropped to her knees, panting.

"Elsa!" Anna called out as she ran to her sister. "Are you alright?"

Elsa nodded, glancing up and offering her sister a weak smile. "I'm fine, I just... I'm not used to using my powers this much. Or this aggressively. It's really taking it out of me."

Reaching down and taking Elsa's hand in hers, Anna helped her back to her feet."A chunk of ice that big... That should hold him for a little bit, right?" she asked.

Already a green light could be visible within the boulder, cutting through the ice like a hot knife.

* * *

It was chaos as the Arendellian soldiers and the Northuldra tried to hold off the corrupted spirits, but it was proving more and more difficult. The Forest Spirits could be dangerous at the best of times and now they were actively seeking to cause the humans harm. Some of the soldiers waved their swords at the Water Spirit, trying to keep it from getting too close. When it inevitably did, one soldier slashed at it with their sword, slicing through the horse's body... to absolutely no effect. Nonetheless, the kelpie reared back in anger, charging forward and knocking several soldiers and Northuldra to the ground.

Kristoff, Sven, Honeymaren, Ryder, and one of the soldiers tried to subdue the Fire Spirit, but the creature was so small and fast it was difficult to catch. It didn't help that none of them were particularly prepared to touch what was essentially a living fireball. Soon the small creature began spinning around, shooting balls of greenish-purple flame in every direction. People started diving to the ground to avoid the blasts, but when Mattias turned to see what was going on, one of them caught him in the right shoulder, taking him down.

"Lieutenant!" Kristoff called out to him.

"I've got him," Honeymaren said, jumping to her feet and racing towards Mattias.

"No, wait!" Yelena called out.

It was then that Gale struck, a heavy gust blowing and hitting Honeymaren hard, sweeping her off her feet and sending her tumbling towards the edge of the cliff.

" _Honeymaren!_ " Ryder called out, rushing towards the edge and diving forward, grabbing his sister's hand before she fell off the side.

"Pull me up pull me up _pull me up!_ " she cried, hanging on for dear life.

"I'm trying!" he shot back.

* * *

With an angry roar and a burst of emerald energy, the boulder of ice shattered into thousands of pieces, revealing Runeard standing there, back in his original snow echo form. Glancing around the immediate area, he saw no sign of either Elsa nor Anna. Looking out into the chamber, he saw nothing but the vortex of Ahtohallan's power... and the numerous snow echoes still making their way through the room. The Snow King smirked. "So. Hide and seek, is it?" he muttered to himself. "Oh, granddaughters..."

Elsewhere in the cavern, Anna and Elsa were huddled down, hiding among the crowd of moving snowmen as they lived out their respective memories.

"This isn't going to work," Elsa whispered roughly to her sister.

"I know!" Anna whispered back. "But it'll at least give us a minute to think of something."

Although their grandfather thankfully couldn't see them, from their vantage point, they could see him as he began to slowly make his way through the crowd, paying close attention to every moving figure.

"You can't hide like this forever, girls," he called out, taunting them. "Sooner or later, you're going to run out of snowmen." In one swift motion, Runeard unsheathed his sword and swung it, cleanly slicing off the head of a nearby snow echo. The head - of Anna on the night of Elsa's coronation - hit the floor and deformed upon impact. The real Anna couldn't help but wince and hold her neck at the sight.

They watched him for a moment, occasionally moving away and hiding behind a new snow echo whenever he grew too close. Though he tried remaining collected at first, Runeard was clearly growing more and more agitated the longer his search went on. He became a little more blade happy with his sword as he went along, cutting down more snow echoes as they got in his way. Another Hans fell to his blade, then another Anna, then Sven, Olaf, Mattias, and even one of Runeard himself. The former king was about to let out a frustrated, angry scream, when his eye fell upon a nearby snow echo of Queen Iduna. Snarling with recognition, Runeard was about to slash her in half... when he suddenly stopped. He examined the echo, thinking. He grinned as a nasty idea formulated within his mind.

By this point, the sisters had stopped watching their grandfather make his way through the room. "I think we should make our way around until we're near the entrance, then make a break for it," Anna suggested quietly.

Elsa bobbed her head about for a moment as she thought it over. "I hate to just leave Runeard here without stopping him..." she mused. "But that might not be a bad idea. We're too outmatched. We need to regroup and try something else."

Anna nodded, glad that her sister agreed with her. "Alright, let's get going."

As they prepared to start towards the entrance, the chamber suddenly grew very dark. Immediately after, the walls began to light up as they had when Elsa first entered Ahtohallan. Slowly but surely, moving images began to come into focus. One of these, the largest at the moment, featured the face of Queen Iduna, her surroundings in the memory revealing that she was in the Arendelle castle.

Anna choked up at the sight. "Mother..." she gasped.

"Anna..." Elsa tried to get her sister to focus and reached out for her, but Anna lightly slapped at her hand, indicating that she needed a moment.

Finally fully focused into crystal clarity, the image of Queen Iduna began to move, as if actually seeing the woman herself. Anna was enraptured as she watched on. It was almost as if she was getting to see her mother alive again. With her younger sister clearly not going anywhere just yet, Elsa surrendered herself to watching her mother's memory as well. Immediately, it was apparent that the former queen was greatly distressed, her face contorted with despair.

" _Agnarr, I can't do this any more..._ "

King Agnarr approached her from behind, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. " _I know, my love. But you have to stay strong._ "

" _Strong?! How can I be strong, knowing what we've brought into this world?!_ " she demanded. Elsa went stiff upon hearing her words. No... Please, don't let her mean... Iduna spun around to face her husband, tears falling down her face. " _Knowing that my little girl... The life I carried inside me... Is a monster._ "

Elsa felt as if she'd been slapped and tears immediately began to well in her eyes as her breathing accelerated. Anna's eyes widened with realization and she quickly looked at her sister, shaking her head. "Elsa? Elsa, no... It's not her!"

" _She scares me, Agnarr,_ " the Iduna on the cavern wall cried. " _She'll ruin us! We make one wrong move and she could kill us ALL. Our kingdom will be a frozen wasteland! She's EVIL!_ "

Elsa's bottom lip quivered as tears started to fall down her cheeks. Openly crying, she held her face in her hands. Anna grabbed her sister's shoulders and looked at her. "Elsa, don't fall for this! That is _not_ our mother! She would never say that! _She loved you!_ "

" _Iduna, please, you shouldn't be too hard on her. It's not Elsa's fault,_ " Agnarr said, trying to comfort his wife as he held her. He sighed. " _It's Anna's._ "

"You meant more to them than... Wait, what...?" Despite the advice she had just been giving her sister, Anna couldn't help but have her attention snatched by her father's words. Still holding Elsa's shoulders, she craned her neck up at the cavern wall.

" _I know it is,_ " Iduna sobbed, nodding in agreement against Agnarr's chest. " _She's ruined our beloved Elsa._ "

Anna stammered, but no words came out. Elsa, despite her tears, heard what was being said of her sister. Sniffling, she pulled her face out of her hands. "That's not true, Anna. You... You didn't... didn't ruin..."

Agnarr sighed again as he held his wife. " _Elsa had such a bright, promising future... And now all that is gone because of her sister's ineptitude,_ " he said bitterly. " _Now she's scared. Full of doubt. Unable to properly control her magic anymore. All because Anna was stupid enough to get hit by her. She's doomed the future of this kingdom._ "

"I... no, I didn't... That's not what happened..." Anna protested meekly, settling down from her crouched position. "It wasn't my fault... I was just a kid..."

Somewhere in their back of their minds, the sisters knew it wasn't truly their parents saying these horrible things. That this was a trick. It had to be. But even so, they were seeing their parents' faces and hearing their parents' voices speak these things. Things they'd long since suspected and feared were true on their own. And whether this was a trick or not, hearing their own parents speak them made them real enough.

"Anna..." Elsa cried, reaching out for her sister's hand, focusing a little more now. "You are the only good thing that's ever--"

" _We should've never had another daughter,_ " Iduna sniffled.

That final statement was all that was needed. The princess dropped onto her knees, trembling. Elsa was on her feet in an instant, her despair immediately replaced with anger despite the tears still falling down her face.

"ENOUGH!"

Sweeping her arms around in a rage, Elsa let loose with an intense shockwave-like blast of magic. The energy hit hard, vaporizing every remaining snow echo in the chamber. What Elsa hadn't thought of beforehand was that this also had the unfortunate side effect of removing anything she and Anna could have used as cover. 

The Snow King grinned. "There you are."

Elsa's eyes widened as she realized there was nowhere left to hide

.


	6. Chapter VI

The Water Spirit glared at the humans with its green eyes, ignoring the soldiers as they tried to fend it off. Leaping over the armed group, it galloped towards Kristoff and the Northuldra, snarling. Off to the side, Sven saw the advancing spirit and panicked. It was then that the reindeer noticed something and did some quick thinking. This was risky, but... Bracing himself, Sven charged forward, aiming himself to tackle the Water Spirit as it ran for the humans. With a loud cry, Sven smashed antlers-first into the kelpie. Though the impaling antlers did nothing to actually harm the spirit, Sven was still strong enough to push it aside with his charge. Swinging his head away, Sven let the Water Spirit careen off to the side... and land directly on top of the Fire Spirit. A large cloud of steam erupted as the two made contact, seconds before the Water Spirit splashed away, then reformed back on all fours. The Fire Spirit was extinguished and completely unconscious. Sven smiled at his successful strategy until the Water Spirit turned and glared angrily at him, its green eyes crackling, at which point the reindeer turned and ran back towards the group.

"Atta boy, Sven," Kristoff said, ruffling his companion's head. The Water Spirit advanced on the humans. Gale blew harder, threatening to send both Honeymaren and Ryder over the edge. Kristoff gulped as the aquatic beast approached. "...Here's hoping we live long enough for that to have mattered."

* * *

Wielding twin battle axes of ice in her hands, Elsa swung them furiously at Runeard. Unfortunately, she hadn't been kidding when she had told Anna that using her powers so much was taking its toll on her. The emotional punch from the fabricated display of Agnarr and Iduna certainly didn't help. Each time she sent the axes towards her grandfather, her movements were slower, weaker. The axes were as sharp as could be, but there was barely any power behind them.

High above the fight, magic from the still flowing vortex began to spill out from the top of the swirling energy, gathering along the cavern's ceiling, looking almost like fog or clouds.

Rearing her arms back, Elsa swung her axes sideways at Runeard, trying to catch him between their blades. But her swing was so weak, he was able to catch them both in his hands. Glaring at him angrily, Elsa tried to pull her weapons free, but the Snow King wouldn't have any of it, rearing his head back and bringing it forward, headbutting Elsa in the face. The queen grunted as she stumbled back, a drop of blood running from her nose onto her lip before freezing over.

"HEY!" Anna shouted at her grandfather, charging forward and running Runeard through with her sword. She glared at him with hatred in her red, watery eyes. Though she knew the penetrating weapon would cause him no harm, she used it to push him away from her sister, putting a good amount of distance between them before Runeard simply lifted his foot and kicked Anna in the gut, sending her sprawling to the ground. Pulling Anna's sword from his chest and tossing it aside, he turned his attention back to Elsa and advanced on her again. Desperately, she raised the axe in her right hand and brought it down, but Runeard easily avoided the attack and kicked the weapon from her hand. Breathing heavily, Elsa grabbed her remaining axe with both hands and swung it horizontally at him, but the king merely caught the weapon's head in his hand once again, stopping her momentum immediately.

"N-no...!" Elsa cried, trying to wrench the weapon back from him.

With a smirk, Runeard tugged the weapon from her grip, then grabbed her wrist with his left hand. Looking at the axe for a moment, he tossed it aside, letting it clatter against the icy floor. Still holding Elsa tight, he reared his right hand back, increasing the amount of snow that comprised it, until his fist was unnaturally large. Elsa's eyes widened as she realized she was about to feel the full force of Runeard's blow at point blank range.

The magic gathered on the ceiling surged and crackled.

"NO!" Anna screamed as she ran forward and leapt up onto Runeard's back, holding on tight. In her right hand, she clutched the broken off tip of an icicle, which she began stabbing down repeatedly into Runeard's neck and shoulder, desperate to distract him as long as she could, to keep him away from Elsa. "You! Stay! Away! From! Her-- _whoa!_ "

Runeard reached behind himself and grabbed the back of her coat, tugging her up and off of his back. His blank white eyes glaring with annoyance and frustration, he threw her hard, sending her crashing into Elsa and knocking them both to the ground. The impact was enough to take out whatever fight they had left within them. Anna groaned as she rolled off of Elsa and collapsed down beside her. The fight had left them bruised and battered and bloody - Elsa from her nose, Anna from her lip. They had worked together and tried their absolute best, but unfortunately Runeard was too strong. Even Elsa's magic paled in comparison to someone who possessed the power of Ahtohallan.

"I'm sorry, Elsa..." Anna said weakly, looking at her. "I'm sorry I couldn't protect you."

"No, Anna, I'm the one who should be sorry," Elsa groaned, frowning. "I'm _your_ older sister. I'm the one who's supposed to keep _you_ safe..." She let out a pained cough.

Bracing herself for whatever was about to come, Anna lifted her arm a little, offering Elsa her hand. She took it, holding her sister's hand tight. Looking into each other's eyes for a moment, they heard Runeard's approaching footsteps and glared up at him together.

"What are you going to do with us?" Anna demanded as best she could.

Runeard smirked as he looked down at his defeated granddaughters. "Well, for Elsa, I'm probably going to channel a whole lot of Ahtohallan's power and _make_ her create me a new body," he told her, giving Elsa an evil smile in the process. "But as for _you_..." He returned his attention to Anna. "You, I don't need quite so much anymore. Honestly, I'm not really sure I ever did."

The magic gathered around the ceiling of the chamber was churning violently now, crackling with the glacier's ancient energies, almost resembling storm clouds.

Reaching his hand out to the side, Runeard summoned one of Elsa's ice axes to his right hand with another green flash. "But, live and learn." Raising the axe into the air, he aimed directly for Anna, then swung the weapon down hard.

" _NO!_ " Elsa screamed, lifting her hand up in a futile attempt to stop him, but she was too weak. No magic came to her. The axe came down towards Anna unchallenged.

A blast of cloud-like energy sprang forth from the magical storm raging above, rocketing down and colliding with with Runeard's axe just before it could plant its blade deep within Anna's chest. The cloud's energy surged through the axe, causing it to shatter and burst apart. Runeard stumbled back, stunned. "Wh-what...?!" he gasped, glaring at his empty hand.

From deep within the magic storm, a voice rumbled, echoing throughout the glacier.

" _WHERE THE NORTH WIND MEETS THE SEA..._ "

Anna and Elsa's eyes snapped open wide.

" _THERE'S A MOTHER FULL OF MEMORY..._ "

"What _is_ that?!" Runeard demanded, his eyes darting around the cavern, trying to find the source of the voice to no avail.

" _COME MY DARLINGS, HOMEWARD BOUND..._ "

"It can't be..." Anna gasped, tightly clutching Elsa's hand.

" _YOU ARE NOT LOST, YOU HAVE BEEN FOUND._ "

A pillar of black fog shot down from the storm above, coming down between Runeard and the sisters. Runeard took a step back, unsure as to just what was occurring, waiting for something to happen. Suddenly, the fog dispersed, fading away and revealing a human figure all clad in black.

Queen Iduna's eyes were filled with rage, staring into Runeard's darkened soul.

"You will not touch my daughters again."

At first, Runeard was taken aback, truly stunned by what had just happened. Soon, though, recognition and rage filled his eyes as he registered the identity of the woman he was now faced with. His lip curled into a snarl. " _You._ " Another sword grew in his hand. "You're the wretch that sullied my boy. That got him killed. That cursed my granddaughter to the life of a witch."

Clutching his sword tightly, Runeard stepped forward.

Her arms at her sides, Iduna merely opened her palms and turned them towards the Snow King. In a blast of the same cloud-like energy she appeared in, she sent Runeard flying back hard, crashing against the floor and skidding a good distance away, his body shredded and partially melted. Iduna watched him for a moment. He wasn't finished, but that should keep him down for at least a few minutes. She had just begun to turn when she was suddenly tackled and embraced by Elsa and Anna, who held her tight and started crying.

"Mother," Elsa cried, looking at her.

"How is it...? I mean, how are you...?" Anna asked as her tears fell.

Iduna looked at the two women's faces for a moment before reaching out and taking them into her arms. "Oh, you poor things," she said, bringing them in close. "I am so, so sorry."

"I don't, I don't understand!" Anna hiccuped, trying to comprehend what was happening.

"Is... Is it really you?" Elsa asked, reaching up and softly stroking her mother's cheek.

"It's me, Elsa," Iduna nodded. "It's alright. I'm here. I'm here for you both." She hugged them tightly once again.

"But, I mean... Are you alive...?" Anna asked, uncertain.

Iduna frowned, shaking her head sadly. "No, Anna. I... I'm still gone." She reached up and stroked Anna's hair, brushing some of it out of her face. "But Ahtohallan is giving me this last chance to save my beautiful girls."

"How touching." The three of them turned to see Runeard, already mostly reformed, making his way towards them. "Now you can all die together."

Iduna turned back to her daughters, cradling their faces in her hands. "Girls, I won't be able to do this on my own. I can give you time to recover, but I'll need your help if we're going to stop him."

"We can't, we've already tried," Anna told her, sniffling.

"Even my powers can't do anything to him," Elsa said quietly.

"It'll be alright. Mother's here now," Iduna reassured them with a smile before giving them a tight hug. "Just rest up and gather your strength. I'll hold him off." Letting go of her children, Iduna stood, turning to face the approaching Snow King. "I thought I told you to stay away from my girls," she snapped.

"Never going to happen, Northuldran," he responded. "Your first born has something I need."

"I will die before letting you defile her gift," Iduna snarled at him, energy building around her hands.

"Funny, I thought you already had," Runeard smirked. With a lunge, he raised his sword and brought it down, but Iduna was fast, easily avoiding the blow and causing the weapon's blade to shatter against the icy floor. Runeard began instantly reforming his sword as he turned, ready to strike again, but Iduna had moved back and started hovering into the air, her eyes and hands glowing. She unleashed streams of fog-like energy from her hands, hitting the former king hard, but this time he managed to withstand the blast and pressed forward.

Reaching for the floor, Iduna raised a pair of tendrils made of water, which quickly sprang out and ensnared Runeard's arms. He struggled against their grip and Iduna focused to keep them tight. After a moment, Runeard's eyes flashed green and his arms tore through the watery tentacles, but he wasn't done with them yet. Grabbing hold of one of them, he whipped it towards Iduna, lassoing it around her waist. With a strong tug, he brought her back down to the ground with a painful thud.

"Mom!" Anna cried.

With an audible groan, Elsa pulled herself up to her feet. "Come on, Anna," she said, reaching down and holding her hand out for her sister. "Let's finish this old man once and for all."

Anna grinned and reached for Elsa's hand, taking it and letting her sister pull her up. "Mom's back," Anna said, looking into her sister's eyes. "We can't let her down."

Runeard slashed down at Iduna, both his hands transformed into sword blades as he tried to hit home with one of them, but the former queen was fast and agile enough to dodge his slices, albeit barely. One powerful stab pierced the icy floor as Iduna managed to roll aside, raising her hands and unleashing twin blasts of spiritual energy, burning away at the evil Snow King.

As they ran towards Runeard, Elsa looked at her sister and smirked. "I'll hit him low, you hit him high?" she asked.

"Great idea!" Anna said with a grin, before realizing. "Wait, how?"

Holding her hand out, Elsa generated a long spear of ice, handing it to Anna. She took the spear and looked at Elsa, still not entirely following. With a grin, Elsa unleashed a stream of magic from her hands that coalesced into a stair case in the direction of Runeard. Anna finally caught on and grinned, nodding as she ran up the stairs with the spear.

With a swipe of his hand, Runeard neutralized Iduna's blasts, causing them to disperse into wisps of smoke. Raising his remaining sword arm, he prepared to bring it down on the former queen.

"HEY, GRANDPA!" Elsa shouted, getting the evil king's attention. He turned to look just in time for Iduna's older daughter to swing with all her might, smashing the head of an icy war maul across Runeard's face, sending snow everywhere. He stumbled back from the fierce blow, setting him up for the next stage. With an angry cry, Anna leapt down off the top of the stair case and brought the spear down hard, impaling Runeard through the torso and planting the head of the spear into the floor, pinning him in place. Quickly dropping her hammer, Elsa began spraying Runeard with her magic, intent on trapping him where he was, at least as long as she could. With a rage, Runeard turned his hands into picks and he began hacking away at the ice as it appeared around him.

"He just won't die," Anna said worriedly as she and Iduna stood by Elsa, watching Runeard attempt to free himself.

Even as she focused on trying to freeze Runeard faster than he could free himself, Elsa let Anna's concern echo through her mind. She was right, Runeard _was_ refusing to die, no matter what they did. Despite her mother's reassurance, Elsa was growing increasingly concerned. "Anna...?" she said softly, turning her head to look at her sister as she kept her magic focused on her grandfather.

Anna looked at her sister. "What is it?"

Elsa bit her lip, hesitating. She knew the princess wasn't going to like what she was about to tell her. "Please understand. This is _not_ about shutting you out or not wanting you here..." She could already see Anna's face start to contort. "...But I think you need to leave."

"What...?" Anna said, shaking her head in confusion. "Elsa, we need to stop Runeard."

"I know!" Elsa told her, her focusing starting to center more on Anna now. "And despite everything we've done to him it's barely even slowing him down. If we were making progress that would be one thing, but we're not. I don't want--"

Anna scoffed at her sister's words, almost offended. "Elsa! We talked about this! We're doing this together!" she told her firmly.

"I don't want to _not_ do it together!" Elsa insisted. "But he's stronger than we thought. Like you said, he refuses to die, no matter what we do. We might not be able to do this!"

"That doesn't matter! We have to--"

" _I don't want you to die! Not again!_ " Elsa cried, starting to get teary-eyed. "You're not the only one who's seen her sister frozen to death, Anna. _Please._ Please don't make me go through that again."

"Elsa..." Iduna started, gently holding her hand out tenderly as she approached her daughter. "Anna can--"

"No, mother!" Elsa snapped, shaking her head. "Runeard is too powerful and I've already seen Anna almost die from magic more than once! From _my_ magic! I am not going to let her be hurt again if there is a single thing I can do to prevent it!"

"Elsa, I'm not a child anymore!" Anna protested. "I can protect myself! I can protect _you!_ "

" _No, you can't, Anna!_ " Elsa cried, her tears starting to fall now.

Standing opposite of Anna, Iduna gently placed her hand on Elsa's shoulder. "Elsa, you don't have worry for your sister. You don't have to be scared. You don't have to fear magic; _your_ magic. You--"

Elsa's head snapped around in an instant, tears freely flowing down her face as she stared daggers at the former queen. " _WHERE DO YOU THINK THAT FEAR CAME FROM, MOTHER?_ " she screamed, pain and rage evident in her voice and on her face. Behind her, Anna gasped at the sudden outburst. Iduna took a step back, her jaw slack as she placed a hand over her heart, feeling it break. "You and father made me _terrified,_ " Elsa quietly, angrily sobbed, wiping away her frosted tears. " _Of myself._ "

Iduna's mouth moved, but nothing came out. Guilt surged through her. "Elsa, I..." She tried for form a sentence - a thought, even - but words failed her. Tears started to form in her eyes. "I am so--"

"ENOUGH!" 

The angry scream snapped the three women back to reality and Elsa realized she'd completely stopped hitting Runeard with her magic. Looking back at him, she saw as the Snow King grabbed the ice spear jutting out of his chest and snapped it in half, pulling himself off the remaining section pinning him to the floor.

" _No!_ " Elsa cried desperately, opening her hands and firing her magic at him. But Runeard wouldn't have any of it, swinging his hand horizontally and unleashing a powerful blast of emerald magic, instantly neutralizing Elsa's power and hitting the three of them hard, knocking them all off their feet. They slid across the icy floor before coming to a halt, groaning and coughing in pain.

"It's not that I haven't loved our little Arendelle family reunion here," Runeard said, his voice thick with annoyance and aggravation as he approached the three of them. "...Actually, that's _exactly_ it. Now then, you and I..." He pointed to Elsa and she began to glow green as he summoned her to him, placing her directly in front of him. "...Have some business to take care of. If you would like the rest of your family to still be alive when we're finished, that's entirely up--"

With an angry cry, Iduna leapt up from the floor, clenching her first, black fog swirling around it, ready to hit Runeard with all her might. But the king was almost nonchalant in his reaction, grabbing her by the front of her dress and tossing her back down to the floor.

"Mother!" Elsa cried, reaching out for her.

"LET HER GO!" Anna screamed. From her position on the floor, she swung her leg around, kicking Runeard's leg in the hopes of sweeping him off his feet, or at least knocking him off balance. But the king barely even budged.

With an angry growl, Runeard used another green bolt of magic to pull Anna to him, grabbing her in his hand. "You are _far_ more trouble than you're worth, girl," he sneered at her. "Your sister has magic I need to get out of here," he told her. " _You_ are not quite so useful. Goodbye, granddaughter." Twisting his body around, Runeard threw Anna hard, assisted with a bit of magic, sending her flying across the chamber.

Directly into the vortex.

The last Elsa and Iduna saw her, Anna's eyes were wide with terror as she reached out for her mother and sister, before the churning mystical energies completely absorbed and disintegrated her.

" _NO!_ " Iduna screamed, heartbreak surging through her.

Elsa fell to her knees like a puppet with its strings cut. Her eyes were wide, but she was looking at nothing. Her jaw hung loosely, but no sound came out. Her mind was empty, her heart broken and still. Runeard was saying something to her, but she couldn't make it out. Her mother's screaming... The raging roar of the vortex... She couldn't hear any of it. She was gone.

Anna was gone.

"Honestly, I should've done that sooner," Runeard mused, brushing his hands together as he returned his attention to his older granddaughter.

With the same empty, lifeless expression on her face, Elsa turned her head and looked up at Runeard.

Ahtohallan turned red.

Not realizing the source, Runeard raised an eyebrow as he gazed around the cavern. "What is this...?" he asked. The walls pulsated with an ominous crimson light. The icicles that had begun forming on the ceiling and walls once he had taken over only worsened, increasing in number, size, and sharpness. In some areas, the ice even blackened. The air became deathly still as even the oxygen molecules themselves began to freeze. Even for a being made entirely of snow, Runeard had to acknowledge the sudden, massive drop in temperature. As if suddenly realizing, the Snow King slowly looked down at his granddaughter, whose eyes had closed.

Black energy surged and crackled across Elsa's body. Redness flowed through the ice that formed her Fifth Spirit dress, until her attire was entirely stained an almost blood red as if to match the ice that made up the glacier itself. Slowly, Elsa opened her eyes, revealing that the orbs within had become completely and utterly pitch black.

A sense of dread overtook Runeard. Her hand over her mouth, Iduna gasped and backed away, uncertain as to how things were about to unfold.

Calmly, Elsa lifted her right arm and opened her hand. Sheets of black ice erupted from her palm, shredding and tearing through Runeard, who groaned in agony as the attack sent him staggering backwards. Already trying to reform from the wounds, Runeard forced himself to take a step forward, but Elsa lifted and opened her left hand, sending more dark ice slicing through his snowy body. Managing to recover from that, he summoned another sword of ice to his hand, raising it as he stepped towards Elsa once again. Elsa responded with a shockwave from her entire body, shattering the sword to shards and blowing pieces from Runeard's torso. Where the shockwave hit the walls, more and more icicles formed. Even though she wasn't directly hit by the blast, just being close was enough to send Iduna careening back, landing on the floor.

"Elsa!" she called out to her. Her daughter simply turned her head to stare at her for a moment. The empty look on her face, coupled with her obsidian eyes, chilled Iduna to the core. Without a word, Elsa returned her attention to Runeard, who was currently staggering due to the endless icicles that had begun growing from and jutting out of his body like icy tumors.

"You... can't... stop... me..." he growled, his throat slightly deformed at the moment. He was perfectly capable of reforming from his wounds, but the icicles were making the process difficult. That, and Elsa was starting to damage him faster than he could reform. Soon he was healed enough, transforming his left hand into a sword as he thrust his right hand forward, firing off a stream of Ahtohallan's power at his granddaughter. Elsa didn't even flinch as the Snow King's magic hit her in the chest. Once again opening her hand, the blast of ice that came forth sent shards of ice stabbing into him. " _Argh, stop!_ " he shouted at her, pained and furious. Turning his right hand into a sword as well, he advanced again, his entire body glowing green. Elsa's lip curled ever so slightly as she opened her hands. The resulting blast hit like a clap of thunder, tearing through Runeard and blowing him into pieces. All that was left of him were his legs from the knees down, which eventually fell aside and began to turn to slush.

Iduna sighed with relief, but jerked in surprise when Elsa did not stop. Standing motionless, she continued to attack the spot where Runeard once stood. She lashed out with beams of magic and shards of ice, striking the ground again and again. The floor began to crack from the unending assault.

"Elsa...?" Iduna said, uncertain.

If the Queen of Arendelle heard her mother, she didn't respond. She continued to attack, striking that one spot over and over again with all of her power, blowing chunks of ice from the floor, forming a crater that was slowly but surely increasing in size.

"Elsa..." Iduna said, louder this time, as she grew closer.

Elsa raised her arms into the air, generating a nearly ten foot icicle, then brought it down hard. As it stabbed deep into the floor of Ahtohallan, the chamber shook and even more cracks split across the floor, some even traveling up through the walls. The sound of groaning, shifting ice could be heard.

"Elsa, _stop!_ " Iduna called out as she ran up to her daughter, grabbing her shoulders and turning Elsa to face her. Seeing her daughter's blackened eyes caused Iduna to shudder for a moment, but she didn't let it deter her. "Elsa, sweetheart, he's gone, you can stop now. You did it."

" **It doesn't matter,** " she said simply.

Iduna gasped as Elsa spoke. Her voice was deeper now. And it echoed. It didn't sound... human. "It doesn't matter...?" Iduna asked her. "Elsa, of course it does! You just stopped a madman from carrying out his plans. You've _saved_ everyone in the Enchanted Forest _and_ in Arendelle." She looked desperately into her daughter's eyes, reaching up and caressing her cheek. "You can go home now."

Impossibly, with as cold as it already was, Iduna felt the temperature drop even lower. Several loud cracks were heard throughout the cavern as large icicles broke off from the ceiling and fell to the floor below, some piercing into it, others shattering upon impact. Unaffected by all this, Elsa reached up and removed her mother's hand from her face.

" **I have no home, mother,** " she told Iduna, the smallest hint of sadness in her face. " ** _She_ was my home. My light. My everything. She was the only thing that kept me sane. That kept me... Human. And now she's gone. The only one who saw any goodness in me. Any worth. Who knew I wasn't a monster. The only person who... loved me... is dead now.**"

Elsa herself began trembling, as if finally reacting to the unearthly cold.

" **Anna is dead now.** "


	7. Chapter VII

Kristoff, Yelena, the injured Mattias, and a few others tried to keep some distance between themselves and the angry Water Spirit, who kept advancing on them and lashing out with its hooves, coming dangerously close to kicking them in their faces. Gale was still blowing furiously, threatening to send Ryder and Honeymaren over the edge of the cliff. Sven raced over and bit the rear of Ryder's pants, pulling him further back to safety, before Gale increased the strength of her gusts, threatening to blow the reindeer over as well. To make matters worse, the Fire Spirit groggily shook its head, slowly beginning to regain consciousness.

"We can't take them!" Kristoff shouted.

"Lieutenant, what do we do?!" one of the soldiers cried out.

Suddenly, Gale dispersed. The Wind Spirit no longer tried to send her three targets over the edge to the forest below and the wind barrier around the area faded. The Water Spirit lowered itself onto its hooves and looked around at the group, as if confused. The Fire Spirit, fully awake now, turned around and faced the humans, tilting its head and smiling.

"...I don't understand," Ryder said as he and his sister rejoined the others.

"Their eyes," Yelena noticed, watching the two spirits closely. "They're not glowing anymore."

"That... that's good, right?" Kristoff asked her, glancing back and forth between her and the spirits.

"I don't know," the elder told him. "Obviously, it's good they're not attacking us anymore. But we still don't know what caused them to attack us in the first place, nor do we know what may set them off again."

* * *

_"The only person who... loved me... is dead now. Anna is dead now."_

_The girl's eyes slowly opened as the voice echoed in her head._

_Anna._

_Why did that name sound so familiar? She knew it from somewhere. Was it her name? No, that's silly, she knew her name, it was... Wait, what **was** her name? Why couldn't she remember?_

_And furthermore, where was she?_

_She looked around but all she saw was a strange void of nothingness that went on for miles in every direction. While she saw nothing tangible to help get her bearings, within the void was a pulsating green light that filled her vision. And it was within that pulsating void that she floated aimlessly, heading towards nowhere in particular. She looked down at herself and gasped softly; it was clear that her body was bare... At least, she was pretty sure it was. As she looked herself over, she saw no skin or features. Instead, all she saw was a shadow. A silhouette._

_Why couldn't she see herself? Why couldn't she remember her name?_

_It seemed like an eternity as she drifted through the void. At least, she thought it did. For all she knew, it could have been a year, but it could just as easily have been ten minutes. It was hard to tell without any sense of time or other people or landmarks or any idea what reality she was even in. Was she even alive? Was she dead? Was this Heaven? Hell? Wherever she was, this whole 'floating naked in an empty void' thing was starting to get annoying. Was this just her life now?_

_"GOODNESS. YOU'RE QUITE AN IMPATIENT ONE, AREN'T YOU, ANNA?"_

_The girl jerked in surprise at the sudden, booming voice, which seemed to come from every direction. As soon its words registered with her, though, her surprise was quickly replaced with offense._

_"Wow. First of all, rude. Second of all... Hey, wait. Did you just call me 'Anna?' I've heard that name before..."_

_"OF COURSE YOU HAVE. IT'S YOUR NAME, ISN'T IT?"_

_"It is?" the girl asked, unsure. "Why can't I remember that?" she asked meekly. "I should be able to remember my name... Shouldn't I?"_

_"IT'S UNDERSTANDABLE THAT YOU CAN'T AT THE MOMENT," the voice told her. "WHAT WITH THE GREAT TRAUMA YOU'VE EXPERIENCED RECENTLY."_

_The girl, seemingly named Anna, nodded. "Yeah, I guess that makes...Wait, what trauma?"_

_"YOUR DEATH, OF COURSE."_

_Anna's mouth fell open, but no sound came out._

_"YOU SEEM SHOCKED."_

_"Yeah, I, uh... Just a little bit, yeah. I, uhm... I died?"_

_"IF IT HELPS COMFORT YOU ANY, IT WAS QUICK. YOU WERE GONE BEFORE ANY REAL PAIN COULD BE FELT."_

_"I mean, I guess that's nice. That's a good thing, right?" Thinking, she brushed some of her flowing hair behind her ear. "...How?"_

_"I CAN SHOW YOU, IF YOU WISH."_

_Anna was uncertain, but hey, she had nothing better to do. "Sure...?"_

_She gasped as the memory suddenly surged through her. A man in all white grabbing her, throwing her, her body hitting what felt like a storm of fire. The last thing she saw before the memory ended was a woman with shining white hair staring in utter horror._

_She was quiet for a moment. "That woman. Who was she?"_

_"SHE WAS FAMILY. YOUR OLDER SISTER."_

_"I had a sister?" Anna said, surprised. "I... I can't remember." She whimpered softly. "I **want** to remember. She seemed so upset."_

_"YOU TWO WERE VERY CLOSE."_

_Anna frowned, searching her mind for memories that refused to come to her. "Can... Can you remind me? Of her?"_

_"THAT INVOLVES A GREAT DEAL OF MEMORIES, ANNA. IT WILL TAKE SOME TIME AND QUITE POSSIBLY OVERWHELM YOU. ARE YOU CERTAIN YOU WISH TO PROCEED WITH THIS?"_

_She hesitated, biting her lip as she weighed her options. She may be stuck in this empty void for the rest of forever, but if she had a life... A family... She should remember it. Who she was. Finally, slowly, she nodded. "Please. Show her to me. Show me who she was... Who I was. What we were to each other," she said, her voice shaky, yet determined. "Show me everything."_

_"AS YOU WISH, ANNA OF ARENDELLE."_

_Anna's face contorted in confusion. "Anna of wha--AAGH!" Her body stiffened and her back arched as an unending array of memories came surging back to her, refilling her mind as her identity was slowly pieced back together bit by bit. She screamed as it felt like her brain was on fire, her memories flooding their way inside her mind like a tidal wave. But after the initial searing heat, she began to see things. Faces. People. Names._

_Herself, as a small child. Her name was indeed Anna._

_Her father Agnarr and her mother Iduna. Her parents were royalty. She was a princess. Arendelle. That was the name of their kingdom._

_Then she saw her. Her sister, Elsa. Somehow, Anna instantly knew that her older sister would be an important factor in her life. She wasn't sure how she knew. It was just a truth she suddenly became aware of._

_The burning sensation in her mind continued, eliciting grunts of pain from Anna as she watched on._

_The memories continued. The first day Elsa and her parents revealed to Anna the secret of Elsa's magic. Her magic becoming a staple of their playtime together. The accident. Grand Pabbie and the trolls... The erasure of memories. The separation. The loneliness. The isolation. In essence, no longer having a sister. The death of their parents._

_Anna groaned as the burning sensation intensified again for a moment, trying to withstand it. Trying to push through it._

_Elsa's coronation. Hans. Did she really just agree to marry him? Eternal winter. Kristoff and Sven. Olaf. Marshmallow. The trolls again. Hans' betrayal. Her sacrifice for Elsa. Sisters reunited. Winter thawed. "Love thaws."_

_Anna whimpered weakly from the pain, yet she couldn't help but smile as she watched the memory of her and Elsa reuniting._

_The first of Anna's birthdays they spent together since reuniting. The birth of the Snowgies. Their first Christmas together. Their unwitting family tradition of Olaf._

_At this point, the burning sensation of Anna's memories returning was beginning to ease up. As awful as it had been, Anna urged herself forward, sensing she was nearly done._

_The voice. The forest. The spirits. The Northuldra. The canoe. King Runeard. Ahtohallan. Saving Elsa. Runeard again. Iduna. Runeard grabbed her and then--_

_Anna gasped for air as her eyes flew open._

_"I remember," she said simply, staring out into the void. Tears started welling in her eyes from the sheer emotion overwhelming her. "I remember everything."_

_"IT SEEMS YOU DO," the voice answered her. "DID YOU FIND THE ANSWERS YOU WERE SEEKING?"_

_"I think I did," Anna answered, nodding. For what seemed like a long time, she was quiet. Thinking. Reminiscing. Finally, she spoke again. "And I think I need to go back."_

_"GO... BACK?"_

_"The sister... My sister. Elsa. She needs me. She's been so scared and lonely her entire life. But Anna... Myself. Me. I've always been there for her. I've been her anchor. And if I'm not there for her, especially because such a sudden death like that... I don't think she's going to be okay."_

_"IT IS ONLY NATURAL FOR FAMILY TO MOURN THE LOSS OF A LOVED ONE."_

_"Yeah... I think this is gonna go beyond 'I'm sad my sister died.' I think she's going to hurt herself. And everyone around her. Please. Let me go to her."_

_"YOU CARE DEEPLY FOR YOUR SISTER, DON'T YOU?"_

_"It's funny. I didn't even know I had a sister a minute ago. Heck, I didn't even know who I was. But now that I've seen who I am... What my life was... Yeah. I really do. I care for her more than anything. I can't just do nothing and let her suffer." Anna stopped for a moment, sniffling. "Especially if it's because of me."_

_"WELL THEN, ANNA OF ARENDELLE, I SUPPOSE IT IS ONLY RIGHT THAT YOU BE ALLOWED TO RETURN TO HER."_

_"Really? You'll send me back to her?" Gratitude swelled within Anna's heart. "Thank you! Thank you so, so much."_

_"OH, NO, ANNA. I WON'T BE SENDING YOU BACK TO ELSA," the voice corrected her. "YOU WILL BE TAKING CARE OF THAT ON YOUR OWN."_

_"Wait, what?" Anna asked, immediately confused. "But... I'm dead. I don't know how to resurrect people from the dead! I don't even know where I am or how to get back from here or...!"_

_"YOU DON'T NEED TO. JUST THINK OF YOUR FAMILY. YOUR LOVED ONES. YOUR ELSA. LET YOUR HEART GUIDE YOU BACK TO THEM."_

_With a shaky breath, Anna closed her eyes and tried to do as the voice instructed her. She let her mind quiet and focused her thoughts on the people she knew in life. The ones that meant the most to her. Her family._

_Her parents._

_Olaf._

_Kristoff and Sven._

_Elsa._

_"...Thank you," Anna said quietly, wiping a tear from her eye. "You have no idea how much this means to me. What it will mean to her."_

_"YOU ARE WELCOME, ANNA OF ARENDELLE. NOW GO. SAVE HER."_

* * *

"Elsa..." Iduna whimpered. Despite her current status as a denizen of the afterlife, fear coursed through her veins. "Elsa, honey, you need to stop this."

" **I am through being told what to do and what not to do, mother.** " Elsa's voice boomed throughout Ahtohallan. Icicles continued to grow from the cavern's ceiling and walls. " **For far too long I've let other people control me. And now? ...Now I have literally no reason left to obey them.** "

The tear that fell down Iduna's face instantly froze to her cheek. She stumbled slightly as she felt the glacier shift and settle under her feet. "Elsa, sweetheart, _please_ ," she cried. "If you don't stop, you won't be able to get out of here safely. Ahtohallan will come crashing down on top of you!"

Elsa's lips curled into a barely noticeably smirk. " **And what makes you think I want to get out of here _at all_ , mother?**" she asked Iduna, her cold black eyes seemingly staring right through her. " **Anna is dead. This accursed place has deemed me its inhuman protector whether I want it or not. My kingdom was built on lies and genocide. And the only way to free the forest is to destroy said kingdom and leave my people homeless.** " Elsa's eyes narrowed at her increasingly frightened mother. " ** _I have no intention of leaving Ahtohallan. I will die here and take this evil glacier with me._** "

Iduna gasped. "Elsa, you can't do that!" she protested. "If you destroy Ahtohallan, all its magic will be unleashed! It'll destroy half the country!"

With inhuman speed, Elsa suddenly appeared directly in front of her mother. Her black eyes met Iduna's. " **I'm sorry, mother. Did you just tell me what to do?** " Elsa raised her right fist as if to strike Iduna. Ice began emerging from her skin and forming around her hand, creating a large icicle-dagger around her fist. " **I could've sworn I just finished telling you I'm done letting people control me.** "

More tears were freezing to Iduna's cheeks. "Elsa, please, I'm not trying to control you, but you're not thinking clearly. You're upset, and you should be, but--"

" ** _'But' what, mother?_** " Icicles began to rise up from the floor around Elsa as she growled angrily, pointing the ice blade directly at Iduna's throat. More icicles rose up behind Iduna, keeping her from backing away from her daughter. " ** _'Conceal, don't feel?'_** "

Iduna's eyes widened. Until now she had been scared for Elsa. Now she was scared for herself.

Suddenly, the vortex of Ahtohallan's power warped and twisted, as if the magic that comprised it was becoming unstable. Despite the tense moment happening between them, Iduna and Elsa turned their heads from each other and stared at the vortex as its power crackled, occasionally firing out bolts of energy, blowing numerous ice clusters to pieces. Tendrils of energy snaked their way out from the swirling energy, sweeping across the floor and destroying a large number of the black icicles created by Elsa's fury, clearing out a majority of them. Once the floor was clear, the tendrils withdrew back into the vortex, which suddenly began to expand, as if about to burst... Until it finally shrank back, seemingly stabilized. Not only that, but the ominous green glow of the vortex that had been there since their battle with Runeard began finally faded, soon replaced with Ahtohallan's more familiar blue and purple hues.

Momentarily forgetting Iduna, Elsa turned her attention to the now stable vortex, confused. Why had it acted like this now? She hadn't done this. She shook her head, refocusing. It didn't matter what color the vortex was. Ahtohallan had to be destroyed. Getting rid of the ice around her hand, Elsa began to generate a large sphere of magic between her palms, ready to fling it directly into the vortex.

As she did that, something began to stir within the swirling ancient energies. A form could be faintly seen within, almost like a silhouette. A woman's silhouette. Keeping her increasing ice magic within her grasp, Elsa watched the shadow within the vortex for a moment and tilted her head, confused once again. What was this?

Soon, the silhouette within the vortex reached its edge, reaching out and touching it. A slight surge of violet energy ran across the edge of the magic as a woman's hand came out, as if breaking the surface of water. For a moment, it felt around, as if testing the environment, before slipping back into the vortex. Another moment passed before this time, a bare leg extended from within the churning magic, taking a step out onto the platform that surrounded it. This time, the entire rest of the woman's body followed close behind. Blue and purple energies, looking almost like fire, quickly wrapped around her, clothing her in their 'flames.' As the energy swirled around her long auburn hair, twisting it into a long braid behind her, the woman lifted her head and opened her eyes, which briefly flashed with blue and purple energy before returning to normal, revealing their turquoise irises.

Standing tall, the woman stared directly at the Fifth Spirit, unwavering. "Elsa."

Iduna gasped at the new arrival. "...Anna...?"

" **No...** " Elsa said, shaking her head. As she took a step back, the ice magic in her hands dissolved from the shock of what she saw. " **It can't be. Anna is dead. I watched her die.** "

"Yeah. I did. It... It's still kinda weird," she said, watching the older girl. "But make no mistake, Elsa. It's me. It's Anna, your sister. I'm back." She offered her sister a smile.

Whatever reaction Elsa could've possibly had, Anna wasn't expecting the one she received.

" **HOW _DARE_ YOU,**" Elsa roared, her voice shaking the cavern. " **YOU MOCK ME WITH HER FACE? HER VOICE?** "

Anna's eyes widened. "What?! No no no no," she stammered, shaking her head quickly. "Elsa, it's really me, I swear!"

" **THIS WON'T STOP ME,** " Elsa screamed, tears falling down her face. " **AHTOHALLAN FALLS TODAY.** " Looking up at the ceiling of the cavern, Elsa reached out with her arms, making grasping motions with her hands. The glacier shook as more and more cracks appeared in the chamber's walls.

"Elsa, stop! Please!" Anna cried. "I'm not crazy about this place either, but if you destroy it, a lot of people are going to be hurt! I _know_ you don't want that!"

The quaking stopped for a moment as Elsa lowered her head, narrowing her eyes at Anna. " **Don't speak of what I want as if you know me,** " she growled. " **You don't.** "

"But I _do!_ " Anna said, tears flowing down her cheeks. "You're good and kind and loving. You're an amazing queen to Arendelle. You always do what's right. You don't hurt people." She sighed. "I know _you're_ hurt right now. Hurt and afraid because you thought you'd lost me. But you haven't." Despite her tears, Anna gave her sister the best smile she could. "I'm right here. _For you_."

For a moment, Elsa was quiet, and Anna thought there was hope. But Elsa quickly broke the silence with an angry cry, conjuring more magic to her hands and flinging it at Anna, sending a cluster of icicles hurtling towards her. With a yelp, Anna leapt to the side, narrowly avoiding the lethal projectiles, which stabbed into the ground where she was only seconds before. Anna was barely back on her feet when she saw Elsa charging up and firing another blast, forcing her to lunge to the side, then scurry back even further when the blast generated a cluster of ice spikes from the floor.

"Elsa, stop!" Iduna cried, stepping towards her. "That is your sister!"

With an angry growl, Elsa glared at her mother and silenced her by firing off a trio of icicles, stabbing into the floor directly in front of her. Turning her attention back to Anna, she spotted the redhead trying to sneak her way around the cluster of icicles to the side of Elsa, but the enraged Fifth Spirit fired another beam of magic that Anna just barely dodged, stepping back and letting it fly past. Turning around, she tried to run in the other direction, but another blast from Elsa cut her off that way too, and she tried to keep her balance and not fall back on her rear. Her feet stable, Anna hurriedly looked from side to side, but her paths were blocked by icicle clusters. She had nowhere to go but forward. She gasped as she saw Elsa advancing on her. A look of utter turmoil on her face, Elsa conjured more magic to her hands, black energy crackling over her arms. Anna held up her right hand in a defensive position. The princess couldn't help but tear up even more. A furious Elsa heading directly for her was a frightful sight.

"Elsa, please, don't, it's me, I love--" she whimpered.

" **LEAVE,** " Elsa said simply, releasing the blast of ice she had been building up and sending it hurtling directly towards the imposter.

"NO!" Iduna cried, reaching out for Anna.

"ELSA DON'T--!" Anna screamed, throwing her arms up and shielding herself with them, shutting her eyes tight as she braced herself.

The expected death never came. Instead, Anna felt water splash at her feet. Her eyes still shut, she tilted her head in confusion. Opening her eyes, she looked around. _What just happened...?_

Looking at Elsa revealed that her older sister seemed just as stunned and confused as she was. Before Anna could say anything, Elsa growled and let out another furious blast of magic. Without thinking, Anna raised her hands to defend herself again. This time, she saw what happened. The instant Elsa's magic came close, Ahtohallan's blue and purple energies burst from Anna's hands, striking Elsa's power and reducing it to water, splashing harmlessly against the floor.

Anna shook her head, completely at a loss for words. She melted Elsa's magic? Thawed it? How did--

It suddenly came to her. When Elsa first fired at her, interrupting what Anna was trying to tell her.

_"Elsa, please, don't, it's me, I love--"_

_"LEAVE."_

Of course. "I love you." How many times did she have to be reminded of this? Of course Elsa's magic wasn't able to harm her. Of course it was reduced to water as soon as it got near her.

Love thaws.

Anna held out her hands, looking at them as they flickered with the flame-like energy of Ahtohallan. Except it wasn't fire, as she had first thought. It was an ancient magic - Pure love, born from her desire to always be there for her sister, to take care of and protect her. And not just Elsa, but Kristoff, and Olaf, and Sven, and her kingdom, and her people. Anna was a loving soul who watched out for all those close to her, and for now, Ahtohallan was rewarding her for it.

Looking up at Elsa, Anna saw her older sister step back, shaken. " **Wh-what is this...?** " she stammered.

"Forgive me, Elsa," Anna said, stepping forward, a look of determination on her face. "But I am gonna have to love you so hard right now."

Elsa snarled, firing a powerful blast of ice at her sister. This time, Anna held out her hands, intentionally summoning plumes of energy that enveloped and melted her magic. Angrily, Elsa made a lifting motion with her hand, causing a series of ice spikes to rise up out of the ground, increasing in length towards Anna. The younger sister briefly winced before making a sweeping motion with her hands, blue and purple flames washing over the ice, thawing it instantly. Elsa reached up, then thrust her hands down, sending a pair of icicles from the ceiling hurtling towards Anna, who merely raised her hands and 'caught' them, allowing their puddles to splash against the floor.

" **STOP IT!** " Elsa screamed, infuriated.

"No," Anna said simply, shaking her head. "I love you."

Elsa recoiled, as if she'd been struck, then snarled, Anna's answer only seeming to enrage her more. She generated two large blocks of ice on either side of Anna and brought them together, planning on crushing her between them. Anna held her hands out, her newfound powers flowing from her hands, and as soon as the ice blocks were close, they burst into water. Anna was drenched, but she didn't falter, still staring directly at Elsa.

"I love you, Elsa," she said, unwavering. "This isn't going to change that."

" **STOP SAYING THAT!** " Elsa roared, charging up another powerful blast and firing it directly at her sister. Anna reacted quickly, firing off twin streams of her own loving magic. The blasts hit each other hard, but this time Elsa's magic did not falter, and the opposing magicks pushed against one another. Anna was surprised at this, but continued on, firing her power at her sister. Elsa didn't let up, unleashing her ice as hard as she could, intent on ending this.

"Elsa... please..." Anna grunted as she struggled to keep up her blast. She wasn't used to this whole magic thing and it was starting to tire her out.

" **SHUT... UP!** " Elsa growled, focusing just as hard on overcoming Anna's magic with her own.

It broke Iduna's heart to see her daughters like this, locked in a life or death struggle, her first born's mind gone... She looked at Anna. Her youngest was strong, but she knew Anna wouldn't be able to keep this up indefinitely. She knew she had to do something. She hoped what she had in mind would be enough. Clearing her throat, Iduna stepped forward.

" _Where the North Wind meets the Sea  
There's a river full of memory  
Sleep, my darling, safe and sound  
For in this river, all is found_"

Anna smiled as she heard her mother's voice echo throughout the cavern. Elsa's eyes flickered, their blackness briefly disappearing. " **Wh-what... No... Stop it...** " she stammered, increasing the strength of her beam and momentarily putting Anna on the defensive. The air warped and steamed where their magicks clashed. As she fought against Elsa's ice, Anna briefly locked eyes with her mother, who gave her a nod. Understanding, Anna nodded in return and took over.

" _In her waters, deep and true  
Lie the answers and a path for you  
Dive down deep into her sound  
But not too far, or you'll be drowned_"

Elsa started to waver, finding it hard to focus. Her eyes flickered and fluttered as she was finding it difficult to keep her footing. Anna's magic began to gain traction, pushing Elsa's black ice back towards her. With Elsa's magic wavering, Iduna stepped closer as she began to sing once again.

" _Yes, she will sing to those who hear  
And in her song, all magic flows  
But can you brave what you most fear?  
Can you face what the river knows?_"

Despite all her anger and strength, Elsa couldn't keep up her magic, which fell against Anna's love. The blue and purple energies tore through Elsa's magic and hit her head-on, causing the Queen of Arendelle to let out a gasp that shook the cavern. As Anna's magic began to envelope her sister, she and Iduna started singing in unison, finishing the lullabye together.

" _Where the North Wind meets the Sea  
There's a mother full of memory  
Come my darling, homeward bound  
When all is lost, then all is found_"

Anna finally cut off her magic, revealing Elsa. Her eyes were no longer black, her dress no longer red. With an exhausted sigh, she collapsed to the floor.

"Elsa!" Anna cried out as she and Iduna ran to her, kneeling down beside her. "Oh, please, please be okay," she cried, reaching out and taking Elsa into her arms, pulling her up into a sitting position. "Elsa, please, wake up. Talk to me. Say something!"

After a moment, Elsa began to stir. Her eyelids started fluttering as she muttered groggily, trying to remember what was going on. She saw Iduna first. "Mother...?" She realized she was being held and looked up to see who it was. "Anna...?" she gasped, incredulously.

Anna smiled at her sister. "It's me, Elsa."

"Oh, Anna!" Elsa cried, tears streaming down her face as she reached up and wrapped her arms around her sister, holding her tight. "I thought I lost you!"

"Heh, I mean, I guess you did, technically," Anna said as she returned Elsa's hug. "But it's okay. I'm here. I'm back."

Elsa's eyes widened as she remembered the rest. "Oh, no." Somehow, even in this cold, her face went noticeably pale. He arms unwrapped from around Anna and she shrunk back as she realized what she had been doing just moments before. "Oh... Anna, Mother, I'm... I am so sorry..."

"Hey. Don't be," Anna told her.

"But I--" Elsa started, but Iduna stopped her, taking her hand in hers.

"Sweetheart, as scary as that all was... You're only human," Iduna reassured her, caressing her daughter's hand as she held it. "You pushed yourself beyond your limits during the fight with Runeard. You thought you'd lost your sister forever. You reached your breaking point."

Elsa nodded, but it was clear she was still shaken from what she'd done.

"Hey," Anna said with a smile, getting Elsa's attention. "What do you say we figure out a way out of here and get ourselves back home?"

Elsa pondered her sister's words, then slowly nodded, smiling. For a moment, she looked at Anna, really taking her in, watching the ancient magic that flowed around her body. "Looks like I'm not the only magic daughter in the family anymore," she chuckled softly.

"Nah, I get the feeling these aren't permanent," Anna told her, smiling. "Which is okay with me. These are cool and all, but the sensation is just so... _weird_. I don't think I could ever get used to it."

"Welcome to my world," Elsa said with a soft laugh.

The two sisters smiled at each other, then moved in close, hugging each other tightly.

"Alright now, let's get going," Anna said finally as they released each other from their embrace. "I get the feeling it's going to take a while to figure out a-- _Kristoff!_ " she cried as realization hit her.

Elsa laughed. "Oh, it'll _definitely_ take a while to figure out Kristoff," she joked.

"No, Elsa! Remember? The last time we saw from him he was being chased by an Earth Giant!"

Elsa's eyes widened as the memory came back to her.

"Girls, girls, relax," Iduna said quickly as she watched her daughters leap to their feet. "With Runeard gone and the balance of Ahtohallan restored, the spirits will be back to normal. Kristoff is safe."

"Are you sure?" Anna asked her worriedly.

"I promise you," Iduna reassured her.


	8. Chapter VIII

"Is everyone okay?" Kristoff asked as he and Ryder helped everyone regroup. Off to the side, the Water and Fire Spirits stood, watching the scene unfold as the humans collected themselves. Gale blew harmlessly in circles above them.

"A few scrapes, bruises, and minor burns, but nothing serious, thankfully," Elder Yelena told him, giving him a grateful smile. "Thank you for your help, Kristoff. We couldn't have survived without you today. Or you, Sven," she chuckled, smiling as she reached over and ruffled the reindeer's head, who groaned happily in response.

The loud and obvious sound of Mattias clearing his throat could be heard behind Yelena. Rolling her eyes, she turned to face him. "I was getting to you, Lieutenant," she told him, an unamused tone in her voice.

"After the reindeer," he pointed out.

The Northuldra leader gave him a look before she continued. "Look, the fact that you came back for us when you didn't have to... That will not be forgotten," she told him. "I don't know about the rest of Arendelle, but you and your men... You will always be considered friends of the Northuldra."

"Thank you, Yelena," Mattias said, giving her a respectful nod. "That means a lot."

The quiet moment was suddenly shattered as the angry neigh of the Water Spirit was heard yet again. The group turned to face the spirits, only to see their eyes glowing green once more. This time, even the kelpie's waters themselves seemed green. The Fire Spirit was enveloped in a massive ball of emerald flame, far larger than usual. Even Gale's winds seemed to be blowing about a strange green smoke.

"No, no, no, not again!" Ryder cried.

"Again?! Not again!" Honeymaren protested. "They were _fine_ a second ago!"

"Who cares?!" Kristoff said, panicking. "Let's just get out of here before Gale cuts us off again!"

The group turned away from the three spirits and were about to head back down the trail to the forest below, when a deafening roar was heard. Everyone went silent with terror as the Earth Giant, having regained consciousness - its eyes glowing green - rose up in front the cliff, looking down at the humans. Far behind the beast, the other two Earth Giants, their eyes similarly glowing, began to make their way through the trees, towards the dam.

* * *

"So... I guess this is goodbye." Elsa's voice was sad as she looked to her mother.

"I guess it is," Iduna said, nodding slowly.

"Will we ever see you again?" Anna asked, wiping away a tear.

Iduna thought for a moment, but all she could do was shrug and sigh. "Probably not," she answered truthfully. It hurt to watch Anna and Elsa frown in response. "Hey." She reached up, taking Anna's face in one hand, Elsa's in the other. "We got an incredible opportunity today," she told them. "Even for people with magic, this sort of thing doesn't happen very often. We should consider ourselves lucky."

"We know..." Anna said, reaching up and holding Iduna's hand as she held her. "We just miss you so much."

"You and father were taken from us so suddenly," Elsa said, a tear running down her cheek. "It's not fair."

Iduna frowned, shaking her head. "No. It's not. I really wanted to watch you two grow up. Maybe meet my grandchildren."

"Gah, mother...!" Anna gagged. Elsa's face had turned beet red.

Iduna chuckled for a moment before her sad expression returned. "But this is the hand we were dealt. I'm just happy I was able to see you both one last time." A tear rolled down her cheek.

Elsa reached up, taking Iduna's hand in hers. "So am I."

Letting her daughters go, the former queen took a step back and exhaled. "Alright. You two should go. Get home. Be safe. Take good care of Arendelle for your father and-- _UNK!_ "

A powerful green beam of magic hit Iduna hard, sending her hurtling away from Elsa and Anna.

"MOM!"

"MOTHER!"

Their minds racing, the two sisters turned to see what had caused the blast. A giant, snowy fist was the first thing they saw as a large, hulking creature seemed to be forming out of ice and snow.

"Wh-- Frostbite...?" Anna asked, her face twisted with confusion. She glanced at Elsa, who had a similar expression on her face.

" **No... Not Frostbite, you stupid girl...** "

Anna and Elsa gasped. The voice, though warped and mangled, was unmistakable.

"N-no..." Elsa insisted, shaking her head. "It's not possible..."

" **What's the matter, granddaughter? Thought you got rid of me?** " By now, the... creature was finished forming. It was clearly King Runeard, but somehow he had come to be melded with Frostbite, creating some sort of hybrid abomination. The former king was much larger now, several physical attributes replaced or enhanced by Elsa's creation. Runeard stood tall, now nearly twenty feet high. He smirked, revealing razor sharp teeth within his mouth. " **You _fools!_ King Runeard is forever!**" With a flash of green light, Runeard unfurled his icicle claws and back spikes.

"Man, _come on!_ " Anna said, clearly more fed up than anything else. "You've gotta be kidding me!" Angrily, she charged towards her former grandfather.

"Anna, wait!" Elsa cried, trying to grab her but she was already too far away.

" ** _You?_** " The hulking Runeard laughed, watching with amusement as Anna moved towards him. " **Didn't I kill you already?** " he taunted her.

Anna sneered at him as she marched forward. "Yeah, and you did a crap job of it!" Thrusting her arms forward, Anna unleashed twin streams of her ancient power at Runeard. The snow creature raised his right hand to catch and block the beams, but as soon as they struck his snowy flesh, he cried out in pain, Anna's magic burning and searing his hand. He reeled back, clearly hurt.

Anna cut off her beams out of pure shock. She figured her magic would cause some damage, but she wasn't expecting it to have such a blatant effect on him. She stared at her hands, then back up at Runeard, and grinned.

"Mother!" Elsa called out to the fallen Iduna, running over and kneeling beside her. She reached down and shook her shoulder. "Mother, wake up!"

"Oww..." Iduna groaned, finally showing signs of consciousness. She held her head as she pulled herself up into a sitting position. "What the..." Her thoughts were interrupted by a roar, and she looked over to see Anna facing off against Runeard. " _How is he still alive?_ "

"I don't know," Elsa told her, worry on her face. "I thought I killed him."

Iduna grimaced as she pulled herself to her feet. "Let's kill him properly this time."

The energies of Ahtohallan flowing around her body, Anna stepped forward, raising her left hand and unleashing a violet blast of power at Runeard, sending him staggering back. A blast of blue energy sprang from her right, knocking him away even further, eliciting a roar of pain. Angrily, Runeard stomped down against the cavern floor, sending a large crack traveling through the ice towards Anna. The princess yelped as she saw the break in the ground head towards her and she leapt to the side, narrowly avoiding it. Looking up, her eyes widened as Runeard towered over her, the icicle claws on his right hand shifting into sword blades. Just as he began to swing his hand down, he was hit with the full power of Elsa's ice magic and Iduna's spiritual energy, sending him stumbling backward before crashing onto his back.

Anna climbed to her feet, looking back at Elsa and Iduna as they joined her, standing on either side of her. As one, the three powerful women turned and faced down Runeard together as the snowy beast rose up, growling in fury and frustration.

" **Forget using the witch's powers,** " he snarled, narrowing his eyes at the trio. " **Ending all your insufferable lives will be satisfying enough!** "

Trading glances between one another, the mother and daughters smirked at the mangled creature's threat.

"Come on, ladies," Anna said. "Let's put this hateful old man out of our misery."

The three of them charged at Runeard. Her smoke-like magic swirling around her, Iduna took to the air. Runeard noticed and looked up at her, but before he could do anything about it, Elsa and Anna unleashed their magic at him, hitting him hard and knocking him back. Regaining his footing, Runeard extended his claws and took a swipe at Elsa as she ran at him, but the Fifth Spirit dropped to the floor and slid past his attack, generating a sword of ice and gashing him deep in his leg. He let out a pained roar and prepared to attack Elsa, when Anna unleashed a blast of her magic, hitting Runeard head on, stopping him in his tracks as the energy burned away at his face. Anna glanced down, then redirected her magic downward, worsening the wound in Runeard's leg. With the creature distracted, Iduna flew forward and sent a surge of her power hurtling forward, hitting Runeard's leg and severing it in a burst of smoke and snow. Runeard shrieked as he toppled to the floor.

Iduna landed on her feet near her daughters, who watched as Runeard started restoring his leg, though the process was noticeably slower than it was before. In a rage, Runeard aimed his hand at them and fired off his icy claws like rockets, but as soon as they were near, Elsa merely lifted her hand, 'catching' the spikes and turning them around, sending them back at their creator. As they shot towards Runeard, Anna gestured with her hands, filling and charging the icicles with her own power. Just as he stood on his newly restored leg, Runeard was struck with his own returned projectiles, each hitting him with explosive power and knocking him back off his feet.

Runeard had barely hit the ground when his body suddenly began to change and shift so that he was looking directly at the three women and he began skittering towards them like a massive spider with a speed that belied his size. His arms turned into giant ice scythes and he began stabbing down furiously, desperate to hit one of his targets. Elsa and Anna leapt to the sides as Iduna once more avoided him in the air. Before the Snow King could react, Elsa leapt up, generating a huge ice sword, its blade so large that gravity pulled it down hard, slicing off Runeard's right arm-scythe. As he howled in pain, Anna fired off a powerful stream of magic, hitting his left arm right at the elbow. Sending a powerful surge through the stream, she blew his second arm off as well. Rearing back and roaring in agony, Runeard couldn't stop Iduna as she surrounded herself with her magic, flew forward, and hit him with the force of a train, sending him careening backwards and crashing onto the cavern floor.

The three of them regrouped once again and watched as Runeard tried desperately to pull himself up. " **You... You can't... can't stop me...** " he panted as he tried to rise, tried to restore his arms.

Elsa exhaled. She closed her eyes for a moment, letting her mind quiet itself, thinking. Opening her eyes, she held her hand out. "Mother. Anna." The two of them looked at her, then down at her outstretched hand. They nodded and gently laid their hands on hers, the three of them pointed directly at Runeard. The colors of their respective magicks began to shine, the energies surging through their skin and coalescing around their joined hands.

" **I am King Runeard of Arendelle, witches!** " he snarled as he got back to his feet, glaring with hatred at them, his claws outstretched. " **I will kill the three of you, the Northuldra, and anyone else who stands in my way! I will restore my kingdom to its former glory! _Arendelle will rise and prosper!_** "

Elsa's steely gaze met his.

"Not with you."

With a clap of thunder, a powerful blue, purple, and black beam of energy erupted from Elsa, Anna, and Iduna's united hands, blasting across the cavern and hitting Runeard with untold force, blowing a layer of snow off the mutant beast upon impact. Runeard struggled to withstand the blast, but his snow melted away, his ice shattering. With a loud cracking sound, the monstrous Frostbite hybrid body broke and burned away, revealing Runeard in his previous snow echo form, who struggled even harder against the ongoing blast of combined magic. In an instant, that body was burned away, revealing a 'ghost' of green energy - Runeard's corrupt soul, kept alive by his hatred and Ahtohallan's magic. But despite all his power and strength, Runeard was no match for the three women and their united magic. With a harrowing scream that echoed throughout Ahtohallan, the former King of Arendelle shattered and exploded, his essence completely destroyed, down to the very last atom. The scorched spot of ice where he stood was the only reminder of his existence.

The mother and daughters let their stream of magic finally end, but kept their hands united and aimed at where Runeard once stood.

"Is... Is he finally gone...?" Anna asked, glancing at Elsa and Iduna. "Did we do it?"

Iduna was quiet for a moment, then finally nodded. "I think we did," she told her daughter. "Runeard's gone. Completely."

Slowly, a smile appeared on Elsa's face.

" _Oh, we did it!_ " Anna cried gleefully, turning around and taking her sister and mother into her arms, hugging them both tightly. "We really did it! We stopped him! We saved the Forest! And Arendelle!"

Elsa laughed at her sister's excitement, nodding as she returned her hug. "We did, Anna." Her smile widened as realization slowly sank in. "We won."

* * *

The Water and Fire Spirits advanced on Kristoff, Sven, Mattias, Yelena, Ryder, and Honeymaren, driving the group of humans back towards the edge of the cliff. The other Northuldra and Mattias' soldiers tried to get the spirits' attention, but the two otherworldly creatures paid them no attention, and Gale's winds kept them at bay. Behind the main group, the Earth Giant came closer and closer, its two companions coming up behind it. Ryder and Honeymaren embraced each other tightly. Kristoff held Sven close.

Suddenly, the air itself began to vibrate. The dam began to shake. Human, reindeer, and spirit alike turned to look as a green glow flashed from the stone structure, washing over the dam, as if a pane of glass had been shattered. That same green glow erupted from the dam like a shockwave, hitting everything in sight... But only the Forest Spirits were affected.

The Fire Spirit's flame immediately extinguished and the salamander collapsed, its color returning to its natural purple. The Water Spirit's waters turned back to their usual blue as the horse staggered, then eventually collapsed as well, laying on its legs. The smoke within Gale dispersed as she reduced from a violent gust into a pleasant breeze. The Earth Giants stumbled back almost drunkenly as their eyes stopped glowing, eventually falling down onto their rear ends, the impact shaking the forest.

Once again, the group of humans stood there, uncertain. They glanced back and forth between each other and the once again docile Forest Spirits, unsure how to proceed from here.

"So... Now what?" Ryder asked. "Are they good now? Again?"

"I have no idea," Yelena answered, a tired expression on her face. "And there's no real way _to_ know unless they start attacking again."

Just then, what sounded like a crack of thunder caught everyone's attention, causing them all to look skyward. A bright light in the shape of four diamonds, what the Northuldra recognized as the emblem of the Fifth Spirit, shone in the sky. As quickly as it had appeared, the emblem shattered, its light scattering and washing through the mist that encaseed the Enchanted Forest. As the light traveled, it eradicated the mist more and more, until at long last the natural blue sky, clouds, and the sun were revealed to the forest for the first time in thirty four years.

Down below, the group was stunned.

"The mist is gone!" Kristoff said, happily.

"Is... Is that the sky?" Honeymaren gasped.

"It's really... blue," Ryder commented.

Behind them, Yelena and Mattias began to tear up as the saw the sky again for the first time in decades.

"I had almost forgotten what it looked like," Yelena said.

Mattias nodded. "It's beautiful."


	9. Chapter IX

Finally, as the high of their victory began to wane, Anna and Elsa slowly turned to face their mother. The joy of defeating Runeard was starting to give way to the realization of what had to come next.

Elsa frowned as she reached out and held Iduna's hand in hers. "I wish you could come with us."

Iduna nodded. "I know. I wish I could, too." She sighed. "I'd love nothing more than to be home with you both in Arendelle."

"Mother," Anna said hesitantly, briefly looking up at Elsa, then back to Iduna. "Why didn't you ever tell us you were Northuldran?" she asked. "Father would tell us stories about them and you never said a word."

Elsa looked from her sister to her mother, nodding in agreement. "You lived well into your teenage years among magic and the Forest Spirits, yet with me you never even seemed to know what magic _was_."

Iduna sighed, nodding. She knew she was foolish for hoping their reunion would end without those questions inevitably being asked. "Honestly..." she said finally, barely making eye contact with either of her daughters. "...I was scared."

Anna and Elsa glared at each other, then back at Iduna, clearly extremely confused. "'Scared...?'" Anna asked.

The former queen nodded. "As much as I loved your father, I had just watched his people start war with mine. I lied about who I was when I first met him and kept my identity as a Northuldran a secret."

"Mother," Elsa said incredulously. "Father absolutely adored you. He never would've turned against you for anything."

"You were the one that saved his life!" Anna added.

Iduna nodded again, sighing. "I know. But even if he accepted me for who I was, I didn't want him to think of the people that had killed his father every time he looked at me." Elsa and Anna made sympathetic faces as realization dawned on them. "By the time I realized I could no longer keep my history a secret and had to tell him everything--"

"--We were already on our voyage to Ahtohallan."

The male voice surprised all three of them. As it had come from behind them, Elsa and Anna turned around. Their jaws dropped to discover King Agnarr standing there, smiling warmly. "Hello, girls," he said softly.

" _Father!_ " Elsa and Anna squealed, running up and wrapping their arms around him tightly.

Agnarr laughed as he put his arms around his daughters, holding them close. "Oh, my beautiful girls," he said as he held them. "It is so good to see you again."

"It's good to see you too," Anna said, sniffling as she snuggled up against him.

Soon, the two of them finally released Agnarr and he smiled at them both for a moment before looking at his eldest, his face becoming somber. "Elsa... I am so sorry." Just at those four short words, tears had already begun to well in the queen's eyes. "For the gloves. The isolation. Keeping you and your sister away from each other. Making you scared of your gift. For everything."

Elsa blinked her tears away, sending them down her cheeks. "Father, it wasn't all on you," she told him, holding his hand. "Grand Pabbie was the one that went on about fear and showed me being attacked by a mob. That's what scared me."

Agnarr appreciated her attempt to reassure him, but shook his head. "No. The Troll King may have warned you about fear, but he's not your father, Elsa. I was. I should've been there for you. Reassured you that no one would hurt you, that you wouldn't hurt anyone, that you weren't someone to be scared of... And instead I let you down." He sighed, then turned and looked at Anna. "I let you both down. I kept you two away from each other when that was the last thing either of you ever needed. Together, the two of you are invincible. And I weakened that."

Anna was shedding tears along with her sister. "For what it's worth..." she said as she sniffled, wiping her tears away, wearily smiling. "I forgive you."

Elsa was quiet for a moment, but finally, she nodded slowly. "As do I. You two may not have handled things perfectly, but you did the best you could. What you did came out of a place of love, out of wanting to keep me safe." She looked at Agnarr, then Iduna, taking a deep, shaky breath. "I forgive you both."

The four of them came together, wrapping their arms around one another, embracing each other tightly for a much needed family hug.

The quiet, tender moment was torn asunder as the swirling vortex suddenly expanded, then burst with a thunderous explosion, sending a shockwave of magic tearing through Ahtohallan. The walls and ceiling of the cavern began to crack and crumble as the entire glacier shook. But this time it didn't stop and Ahtohallan continued to quake.

"Wh-what's going on?!" Anna asked, her eyes darting around.

"I don't k-know," Elsa said, panic rising in her voice. "I can sense s-something w-wrong w-with Ahtohallan's magic, but--"

"Ahtohallan has become unstable," Iduna told them, her eyes widening in realization as she tried to keep her footing. "The corruption of its power by Runeard, our fight with him, the damage caused by Elsa, who knows how much power it used to bring Anna back... The glacier can't take the strain." A large chunk of ice fell from the ceiling and crashed to the floor, shattering upon impact. " _Ahtohallan is falling apart!_ "

Elsa and Anna gasped, shocked.

"You girls have to go! Now!" Agnarr told them urgently. "Before it's too late."

"We can't just leave you here to suffer through this," Elsa protested.

"Elsa, you don't have to worry for us. We're already gone," he told her. "Even this place can't hurt us now. Please. _Go._ "

"But--" Anna started.

Iduna stepped up and took Anna's face in her hand, Elsa's in the other. "Go. Get home to Arendelle. Be safe. Be strong." Iduna fought off tears as she looked at her girls one last time. "Take care of each other."

Tears fell down the sisters' cheeks, but they nodded. Moving in quick, they each gave their mother and father one last hug, then finally pulled away, making their way towards the cavern's main entrance.

"Goodbye..." Elsa mouthed. Iduna and Agnarr nodded a silent farewell as they watched their daughters leave. An enormous icicle fell from the ceiling, falling down in front of them, the resulting cloud of snow erupting from the impact obscuring them from sight. With a sharp inhale, Elsa turned away from where their parents once stood and looked to her sister. "Let's go, Anna!" Anna nodded in response to her sister and the two made a beeline for the main entrance to the cavern, leaving the crumbling chamber behind them.

* * *

The Northuldra and the soldiers helped people to their feet, making sure everyone was in good enough shape to walk from the dam to... Honestly, they weren't quite sure where, if anywhere in the forest, would be safe. As such, the group decided the best place to head to for the time being was the Northuldra's former camp site. Kristoff comfortingly ruffled Sven's fur. "You alright, buddy?" he asked. The reindeer nodded and groaned happily.

As the humans regrouped with one another, the Water Spirit suddenly lifted its head. The ancient creature sensed something. The Fifth Spirit... Rising to its feet, the kelpie let out a deep neigh, then shot off into the horizon like a rocket, leaving a trail of water on the soil as it disappeared into the distance.

The sudden take off of the aquatic beast startled the group, causing them to jump slightly when the horse sped off through the forest.

"Where's he off to in such a hurry?" Honeymaren wondered aloud.

"Bah, who cares?" Kristoff huffed, waving his hand in a dismissive manner. "Stupid water horse."

* * *

The sounds of destruction exploded all around Anna and Elsa. Large chunks of ice crumbled and fell from the ceiling. Large pillars of ice toppled and crashed. Clouds of snow filled the cavern, obscuring everything. Elsa tried clearing their path, swiping her hands from side to side, but although her powers affected the snow, there was too much of it and it filled the cleared areas too quickly for her magic to be of any real help. As the two sisters reached the main entrance to the cavern, the ceiling finally gave away, massive chunks of ice crashing down, filling and blocking the room off from further entrance.

Taking a moment to register the situation, Anna turned to her sister. "Lead the way, sis," she said to her. "I was too busy panicking on top of a water horse to really pay attention to the path I came in on."

Elsa nodded and ran forward with Anna following close behind. Soon they were in the room where Elsa had lifted all the fallen pillars of ice on her way in. The two of them began to run through, but they had barely even reached the halfway point before the glacier's shaking caused the massive pillars to break away from the walls and begin to fall inward, threatening to crush anything in their path.

Elsa's eyes widened as she saw the huge spires of ice falling towards them. Moving quickly, the Queen of Arendelle reached out with her right hand, 'catching' the pillars on that side. Before she could dispose of them however, the pillars on the left of the chamber began to fall towards them as well. With a strained groan, she reached out and caught those in midair with her corresponding hand. With her powers as exhausted as they were from the fight with Runeard, and her worn out state in general, Elsa groaned as she struggled to keep the massive ice from falling any further.

"Elsa?" Anna asked, clearly concerned for her sister.

"So... Heavy..." Elsa grunted as she fought against the pillars' weight, trying to keep them afloat. Try as she might, she was failing, as they slowly but surely grew closer to the ground. Gritting her teeth, Elsa strained as she focused all her strength into her magic. With a chaotic yell, she shoved hard, sending the pillars flying backwards, creating piles on either side of the room. Letting out an exhausted breath, Elsa collapsed to her knees, panting heavily.

"Hey, you did--" Anna's compliment was cut short by a loud crackling sound from above. Glancing up, she saw a large chunk of ice break from the glacier's ceiling and drop like a rock towards her sister. " _ELSA!_ " Anna screamed, her eyes wide. Instinctively, she immediately lifted her hands and fired twin streams of magical energy, the colorful flames striking the falling ice and melting it away, resulting in a waterfall's worth of water. Anna didn't stop until the block of ice was gone completely, her sister safe.

But instead of a smiling, grateful face, Elsa glowered at her sister. The waterfall that had resulted from the melting of the ice had fallen directly onto her, leaving her completely soaked and dripping wet.

Anna let out a weak, sheepish laugh and shrugged. "Heh. My bad?"

"Let's just get moving," Elsa grumbled, dismissing her soaked state as she and Anna finished running through the room without any further incident.

After passing through a short corridor, the two of them entered another large cavern. Elsa's eyes widened as she realized they had entered the room with the seemingly bottomless pit. She stopped running immediately and put her arm out in front of Anna to stop her as well, but the two had built up too much momentum and their feet, wet from the melted ice, continue to slide forward, sending the sisters speeding towards the edge. With an upward swipe of her hand, Elsa began erecting a wall of ice in front of them to stop their sliding and catch them, but it had no time to thicken before the two women collided with it and they crashed through the thin ice, shattering it and sending the two off the edge into the pit.

The two screamed as they plummeted into the darkness. Elsa reacted quickly, reaching out and grabbing Anna's right arm with her left. " _Hold on!_ " she instructed her sister. Extending her right hand, she summoned a glowing pickaxe made of ice. Swinging it as hard as she could, she planted its tip into the wall of ice beside them, bringing their descent to a harsh and sudden halt.

" _Oww..._ " the two of them groaned simultaneously. The faint light emanating from the pickaxe was the only illumination they had. The glacier continued to shake, threatening to loosen the pickaxe and resume their fall.

"Now what?" Anna grunted as she held onto Elsa's arm for dear life.

"Uhm..." Elsa thought quickly, looking around. "I need my other hand, Anna! Hold onto me!"

Reaching out for her sister, Anna wrapped her arms around her waist and held on tightly. Using her free hand, Elsa shot a blast of illuminated ice out into the cavern, which then exploded like a firework. Thanks to the light, she was able to spot a large flat area that would make a good place to regroup. Unfortunately, it was too far away, not to mention quite a ways below them.

Elsa bit her lip. "Oh, you're not going to like this," she told her sister.

As if reading her mind, Anna glared up at her. " _You are NOT going to throw me to that ledge?!_ " she snapped incredulously.

"No, but what I _am_ gonna do isn't much better," Elsa told her, looking down to her sister. "Let go!"

"WHAT!"

"Trust me, Anna," Elsa insisted. "Let go."

Anna opened her mouth to protest again, but stopped herself, going quiet and nodding. She trusted her sister with her life. Bracing herself, she unwrapped her arms from Elsa's waist and let herself drop. Immediately, Elsa aimed her hand and unleashed a powerful blast of magic, creating a slippery pathway for Anna to ride down, almost like a slide, directing her towards the platform as safely as she could.

" _...Elsa I hate this...!_ " Anna screamed as she sped down the ice path, watching as the platform approached faster and faster. Soon she reached the end of the path and rolled onto the platform, coming to a stop. "Oh, that was one of the worst things ever," she muttered as she dizzily got to her feet. Shaking her head clear, she glanced up at her sister. "Elsa, come on!"

"Alright, Elsa, you got this," she said to herself. "Anna made it no problem. Just drop straight down and--" A cracking sound grabbed Elsa's attention and she saw the glacier's quaking had finally dislodged her pickaxe, sending her down whether she was ready or not. She screamed as she landed on the pathway and began sliding down towards the platform. "Okay, this isn't so bad," she said breathlessly, slightly smiling as she slid down towards the bottom.

"ELSA!" Anna screamed.

Looking up, Elsa gasped as she saw a large chunk of ice break off from the wall and fall, hitting and breaking the ice path behind her. That damage inflicted, the path began to crack and crumble, the destruction quickly catching up with Elsa. Seconds before the ice slide was about to disappear from under her, she generated a curved ramp in front of her, allowing her to slide up into the air and come down onto the platform on her feet. She slid forward, but Anna was there in an instant, throwing her arms around her and catching her, stopping her momentum.

"I've got you," Anna reassured her.

"Thanks," Elsa said, offering a smile as she caught her breath.

"So how do we get out of here?" Anna asked, unwrapping her arms from her sister. "I'm not sure melting anything is going to help in this particular scenario."

Elsa stood there for a moment, thinking over their options as quickly as she could. "Actually?" She lifted her head and looked Anna in the eyes. "Melting might be exactly what we need right now."

Anna tilted her head and raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"I think it would be a mistake to try and get back up there with the glacier shaking like it is," Elsa said, briefly pointing up to the top of the pit. "But if we use our powers, we might be able to make a new exit out of here. Just melt up and out until we reach outside."

Anna shrugged. "Alright, let's give it a try." Turning to the wall, she let out a powerful blast of her magic, burning through the ice, creating a tunnel that slanted upwards. Elsa approached and waved her hand, the slippery floor of the tunnel turning into stairs.

"Okay, let's keep it going," Elsa said. "We'll just have to make this tunnel as we go!" Anna nodded and the two ran inside. They ran further and further into their makeshift corridor, Anna thawing the ice and Elsa creating stairs for them to rise on. "This is taking too long, we should be out by now," Elsa noted, shaking her head. "Aim your magic further up, Anna." The princess nodded, tilting the aim of her magic higher, making the corridor a little steeper.

Higher and higher they rose, their magic quickly carving through Ahtohallan's ancient ice. "Geez Louise," Anna huffed as she melted away more of the glacier. "We've gotta be almost there by _now!_ " As if in response, a violent tremor shook the corridor, throwing Anna off her feet and sending her plummeting down the steep staircase.

"ANNA!" Elsa gasped. Reaching out for her, a large hand made of ice emerged from the floor, opening wide and catching Anna before she could fall too far. "I've got you!" Elsa said, stepping down the stairs and grabbing Anna's hand, pulling her out of the ice hand and holding her close. "Come on, we're almost there!"

The two sisters ran up their self made stairway, searing through the ice, steps appearing underneath them as they ran. Soon, Anna's magic burst through the ceiling, revealing the dark, cloudy sky above them. "Elsa! We're out!" she cried happily.

Somewhere deep inside Ahtohallan, something exploded. A large cloud of cold, snowy air burst into the bottomless pit and up the sisters' corridor, blowing them out of it and up into the air. They screamed as they soared through the air and crashed down into the snow of Ahtohallan's shores.

"Ugh... Just like a pillow..." Anna grumbled sarcastically as she pulled herself into a sitting position, after spitting out a mouthful of snow. Looking around, she spotted Elsa nearby, laying face first in the snow, her arms and legs almost in a snow angel position. "Elsa!" she called out to her, making her way over and kneeling down. "Are you okay?"

Elsa pulled her face up out of the snow, revealing that it was coated in the white powder. "Fine and dandy," she muttered, clearly unamused. Pulling herself up, Elsa brushed herself off as she and Anna made their way to the water. Hearing a deafening crack, the two glanced back at Ahtohallan's entrance, watching as a large chunk of ice broke away, hitting the ground.

"What do we do?" Anna asked quickly. "I'm pretty sure neither of us can swim _that_ far."

Elsa nodded in agreement, then paused in thought for a moment. "You know, I hate to even suggest it, but--"

Anna gave her a look. "Elsa, this is one time where an ice boat would be a _good_ idea."

"Okay, okay," Elsa said, nodding. She flexed her arms and prepared to conjure a boat with her magic, when a sudden neigh got her and Anna's attention. Glancing up, they saw the Water Spirit speeding towards them, large swells of water on either side of it. "Or, even better..." Elsa said with a grin. Soon, the kelpie stood before them and neighed, signaling for them to mount it. Elsa nodded and stepped forward. "Let's go home, Anna."

"Gladly," Anna said as she approached the spirit. "I've had enough of this place to last me a life-- _Oh no..._ "

"'Oh no?'" Elsa asked, confused. She turned from the Water Spirit and back to her sister. She raised an eyebrow as she saw the blue and purple flames around Anna's body slowly begin to rescind and fade. "...Anna?"

" _Ohh, no no no no,_ " Anna said quickly, wrapping her arms around herself. "Elsa, you know how I said my powers probably wouldn't last forever?" she reminded her sister. "I think we've reached that point."

"So...?" Elsa asked, not catching on.

Anna shot her sister an annoyed look. " _So_ I don't think my clothes were brought back to life with me!" she snapped.

Elsa's eyes widened as realization struck. "Oh! Oh, right! Uhh... here!" Thinking quickly, Elsa gestured with her hands, shooting streams of magic at Anna. Just as Ahtohallan's magic disappeared from her body completely, Elsa's magic enveloped it, creating a blue, icy version of the outfit Anna had worn into the Enchanted Forest.

"OH, _WOW,_ " Anna gasped, her eyes impossibly wide as she fidgeted in place for a moment, nearly biting her fist. "That... Yeah, that's brisk! Hoo boy, that'll wake you _right_ up. Wow!" She exhaled sharply as she tried to collect herself. "I've got ice in places ice should never be."

Elsa gave the freckled girl a look. "Be uncomfortable later, we've gotta go!" Turning to the Water Spirit, she jumped up and mounted the majestic creature, holding out her hand for her sister. Anna nodded and hurried forward, taking Elsa's hand and letting her pull her up onto the kelpie, sitting behind her. With both sisters holding on tight, the Water Spirit turned and shot off as it began crossing the Dark Sea once again. Seconds later, what sounded like thunder was heard, and Elsa and Anna turned back to see Ahtohallan finally give out under the stress. Though the magic deep, deep within its core was safe, the glacier itself imploded, crumbling to pieces, never to be visited again.

Now that she and Anna were safe and no longer in danger from the glacier's destruction, Elsa let the gravity of its loss begin to sink in, tears running down her cheeks as she softly began to cry.

Anna saw her sister's tears fall and frowned sympathetically, putting a gentle hand on Elsa's shoulder. "Hey," she said softly, offering her sister a warm smile. "At least we got to see them again."


	10. Chapter X

Mattias stood a few feet ahead of the group, ignoring the pain in his arm as he watched over everyone while they gathered their belongings and prepared to head back towards the former Northuldra camp.

"Alright, everyone. Let's get going," Yelena said as she started to lead her group down the trail.

At the same time, the lieutenant clanged his sword against his shield. "Let's head out, men!" he called to his soldiers.

Just then, the ground shook, startling the group. A loud, almost growl-like inhale was heard as the Earth Giants lifted themselves back onto their feet and began glancing around, looking at one another. Nervously, the tiny humans watched them, uncertain as to what was about to happen. The closest Earth Giant turned its head and glanced down at the gathering of people for a moment that seemed to last forever... before finally turning and stepping away from them, causing them all to let out a collective sigh of relief. They turned back to the path and were about to resume their trek, when Ryder suddenly spoke up.

"Uhm, what is he doing?"

Kristoff turned to see what he was talking about. As soon as he did, his eyes immediately widened in concern. "Uhh..."

Letting out a low, grumbling noise, the Earth Giant walked right up to the dam. For a moment, it did nothing but stand there, occasionally moving its head around, as if inspecting the structure. Without any warning, the giant stone beast raised its fists, then slammed them against the dam. The entire forest shook and several noticeable cracks shot through the barrier.

Everyone in the group went silent with shock as they realized the Giant's intent.

* * *

Elsa and Anna were overjoyed as they saw the shores of the Enchanted Forest quickly approaching. They smiled and cried out in celebration as they realized the forest was visible from the sea, no longer shrouded in the cursed mist. Before too long, they reached a less stormy, more wooded section of the beach, and the Water Spirit slowed down as it stepped foot onto dry land, finally coming to a full stop. The sisters climbed off the creature's back and lowered themselves down onto the sand.

"Oh, dry, non-icy land at last..." Anna sighed happily.

Elsa smiled at her sister for a moment, then turned to the Water Spirit. "Thank you, Spirit," she said, reaching up and stroking the horse's mane, running her hand through its water. Calmly, she brought her head forward, as if bowing to the kelpie. The Water Spirit returned the gesture, bringing its head to Elsa's, touching their foreheads together. Anna watched in curiosity as her sister and the spirit stayed like that for a moment. Silently, Elsa nodded and slowly pulled away, opening her eyes and smiling at the creature. "Thank you, Nøkk. Anna and I would've been truly lost without you."

Nøkk, the Water Spirit, nodded, snorting in response.

Anna nodded her agreement to the majestic beast, then turned to look at Elsa, who sighed contentedly. "So," the redhead said softly, brushing some of her hair behind her ear. "What next?"

Elsa stopped in thought for a moment, then shrugged. "Well, Runeard is gone. The mist has been lifted... I guess we head back to Arendelle for now."

Anna raised an eyebrow. "'For now?'"

Elsa found that all she could do was shrug again. "I just... I don't know what the future holds for me, Anna. I still have no idea what this whole 'Fifth Spirit' thing even means. Maybe it's a duty I have to uphold for the rest of my life. Maybe killing Runeard was my entire purpose and I'm done with it now. I have no idea." She looked up into Anna's blue eyes. "I have a lot to figure out."

Anna nodded, understanding. "Well, hey, like I told you in Ahtohallan..." She stepped forward, taking Elsa's hand in hers. "If you need help figuring anything out, I'm here for you." Anna paused for a moment. "Or... If you need me to ease back a little so _you_ can figure it out, I can do that too."

Elsa smiled and nodded, holding her sister's hand tight. "Thank you, Anna. I have a feeling working all this out won't be easy. I'm sure I'll need you more than I won't."

Before Anna could respond, they felt a tremor shake the land. The sisters' eyes widened, raising their heads in alarm as the same thought came from their mouths at the same time:

" _What was that?_ "

* * *

"He's gonna break the dam!" Kristoff cried.

" _No, no, no!_ " Mattias panicked, running past Kristoff and towards the edge of the cliff. Once he had reached it, he began clashing his sword against his shield, trying to get the Earth Giant's attention. "HEY!" he shouted as loud as he could. "HEY, OVER HERE!"

"What is he _doing?!_ " Honeymaren asked, dumbfounded. "We _just got_ the spirits to stop attacking us!"

"If they destroy that dam, they destroy Arendelle!" Kristoff told her as he ran up and joined Mattias, jumping up and down and waving his arms wildly. "LOOKY HERE, BOULDER BRAIN!" Beside him, Sven let out a loud reindeer roar. The other Arendellian soldiers quickly joined in as well, shouting and joining Mattias in clanging their swords and shields together.

Honeymaren, Ryder, and Yelena traded glances amongst themselves, but they knew they couldn't just let Arendelle perish. The Northuldra joined the group, all shouting and waving their arms. Finally, all the noise got the Earth Giant's attention. The massive beast turned its head and glanced down at the humans for a moment.

"Yeah, that's right!" Kristoff called out. "Over here, stupid! Come and get us!"

The Giant's rocky brow furrowed briefly, as if mulling over the humans and their attempts to get its attention. Finally, it decided to not pay them any further mind, turning back to the dam.

"Hey, what? No! HEY!" Kristoff shouted.

Rearing its arms back, the Earth Giant brought its fists forward with enough force to obliterate a mountain. The dam shattered like glass and the river's waters, contained for decades, blasted past the Giants, drenching them as the tidal wave raced down the fjord.

" _NO!_ " Kristoff and Mattias screamed, their eyes wide.

* * *

Elsa and Anna paused, uncertain as to what had caused the noise and minor earthquake.

"Could it have been the Earth Giants stomping around?" Anna theorized.

"I don't know," Elsa said, shaking her head. "It seems to have stopped, but..."

As if on cue, the ground shook even more, threatening to knock the sisters off their feet. Nøkk lifted its head, looking out towards the other side of the forest. Suddenly, what sounded like a raging river, only much, much louder could be heard.

Realization hit the sisters at the same time.

"The dam!" Elsa gasped.

Anna's eyes widened. "Arendelle!"

Generating another icy reins around Nøkk's neck, Elsa leapt up onto the Water Spirit, then turned to Anna, holding out her hand to help her sister onto the beast. "Come on!" she said quickly. "We can make it if we hurry."

Anna nodded and stepped forward, but suddenly hesitated, her mind racing. Finally, she looked up at Elsa and shook her head. "You know... I think I'll sit this one out. Go."

Elsa's eyes widened with shock, not having been expecting that answer. "Anna... Are you sure?"

The princess nodded. "I can't handle Nøkk's speed as well as you can. Besides, you'll be faster without me. Go. Save home. I'll meet you back at the Northuldra camp."

Elsa still seemed a little stunned, but nodded and turned her attention back to Nøkk. "Let's go!" she declared, kicking its side. With a mighty neigh, the Water Spirit blasted off through the forest, disappearing in seconds.

Anna watched as Elsa and Nøkk vanished into the trees. She stared at that spot for a few minutes, then eventually sighed deeply, finally letting everything that had happened over the previous day sink in. She thought about everything she'd been through... and everything Elsa had been through. Everything Elsa had gone up against and come out on top. Anna sighed. While she would always look out for her sister and do her best to protect her and keep her from making rash decisions... Maybe Elsa didn't need Anna hovering over her quite as much as she had been. Maybe Elsa, to a certain degree at least, was fully capable of taking care of herself. It would be difficult - Elsa always seemed to be getting herself into trouble in one way or another - but Anna knew it had to be done. Especially with Elsa now being the Fifth Spirit... Whatever that meant.

With a nod of determination, Anna marched forward and began her trek back to the Northuldra camp site.

* * *

The waves could already be heard on the cliffs. The rushing water made its way down the fjord at breakneck speed, heading closer and closer to the defenseless kingdom of Arendelle. The people began to gather, watching as the waves came around the bend and headed directly for their home.

"What do we do, Pabbie?" one of the trolls asked.

The Troll King gazed out at the approaching waves with unease. He turned back to face the crowd of people behind him. "Everyone, back away from the edge!" he told them all. "We should be safe here but there's no telling how hard those waves will hit!" The trolls, along with Gerda, Kai, and the rest of the royal staff, began backing the citizens away as far as they could from the edge of the cliffs.

Grand Pabbie suddenly lifted his head. He sensed something... Something familiar.

As if rumbling thunder in the distance, a horse's neigh could be heard. Stepping forward to get a better view of things, Grand Pabbie watched as the ominous waves rushed towards them. Suddenly, something pierced from the front of the water and shot forward even faster, putting itself between the raging water and Arendelle. Grand Pabbie squinted to get a better look at what it was. As soon as his eyes focused, he gasped.

"It's her!" the Troll King declared. "Elsa!"

Several people and trolls around him stopped what they were doing as they heard him, turning to see what was going on.

Down below in the fjord, Elsa leaned forward and spoke to the Water Spirit as they raced ahead of the flood. "I'm going to need your help, Nøkk," she told him. "That's a lot of water, even for me." The kelpie nodded and rushed forward, eventually reaching the outer walls surrounding the castle, then turning to face the oncoming waves. They dwarfed the queen and her spirit companion, making them seem like ants as they crashed towards them.

Closing her eyes, Elsa focused, slowing her breathing and gathering her power. Just as it seemed the raging water was about to strike, Elsa opened her eyes which, along with Nøkk's, began to glow white. Throwing her arms open, Elsa's magic pulsed within her palms. Suddenly, an enormous shield of ice emerged from the fjord's waters, placing itself between the flood and Arendelle. With some obvious effort, Elsa made the wall of ice even larger, then began to curve it. The water hit the ice with tremendous impact, shaking it violently as Elsa struggled to keep her shield intact. Thanks to the wall's curved shape, a good majority of the water was simply redirected and dispersed out into the open sea. The citizens high on the cliff cried with joy as they watched their queen save their homes.

Elsa kept her magic strong until she was certain every single drop of water from the flood was gone and no longer posed a threat to her kingdom. Satisfied that everything was finally safe, the glow faded from her eyes and hands as the massive ice shield rescinded, melting away into the fjord. The danger gone, she had Nøkk turn toward the cliffs and race forward, leaping off several rocks and tree tops until the kelpie stood proudly on the cliff, allowing Elsa to address her people.

"A Forest Spirit..." Grand Pabbie whispered in awe as he realized the true nature of Elsa's steed.

"Queen Elsa!" Kai gasped. "You're here."

"Oh, you're alive! Thank the heavens!" Gerda cried happily.

Elsa nodded, smiling to her two head servants. "It's good to see you again too," she said to them, briefly gazing around at the crowd of citizens. She looked down to Kai and Gerda, as well as Grand Pabbie. "Is everyone alright?" she asked.

The Troll King nodded. "Safe and sound, Elsa," he told her. "We made absolutely certain no harm came to any of your people. They were well taken care of." Behind him, Kai and Gerda nodded in affirmation.

"Thank you, Grand Pabbie. We are in your debt," she told him, to which the elder troll bowed. Lifting her head, Elsa inhaled and spoke as loudly as she could without screaming, addressing her people. "Everyone, the danger has passed. It is safe for you all to start moving back into town. Princess Anna and I will be returning soon." The people began to clap and cheer at their queen's words. Kai and Gerda happily bowed to her.

With a nod, Elsa turned Nøkk away from the crowd and the Water Spirit raced down the cliff and back onto the water, disappearing northbound up the fjord.


	11. Chapter XI

The next few hours were simultaneously quiet and chaotic. Everyone was on a path to reunite with one another, though none of them knew it at the time. They were all headed back towards the Northuldra's former campgrounds, which were thankfully far enough out of the way to not be affected by the flood. But despite all the unrelated plans to travel there, no one seemed to be in any hurry to arrive. Everyone was exhausted, mentally and physically. They were bruised and battered. And they were all lost in their thoughts.

Kristoff, Sven, the Northuldra, and the soldiers were the first to arrive. The People of the Sun began to set down what belongings they had left as Kristoff started to feed Sven. A moment later, Mattias approached the pair.

"Any idea what happened to the queen and the princess?" he asked Kristoff.

The ice harvester shook his head. "I couldn't find them," he said, sighing sadly. "Once Sven and I have recuperated from all... that..." He reached out and gestured in the direction of the demolished dam. "We're gonna head back out and start looking for them again."

The lieutenant nodded. "Of course. And you'll have my men and I right alongside you."

Kristoff smiled wearily. "Thank you, Lieutenant. I have a feeling we'll need as much help as we can get."

Mattias was about to respond when he glanced up, noticing some motion not too far behind Kristoff. He focused on it for a moment, watching as something started to emerge from the foliage. He smiled. "Or perhaps you won't need any help at all."

Kristoff tilted his head and raised his eyebrow in confusion at the older man. He was about to ask what Mattias was talking about, when Sven started excitedly nudging him with his snout. "Sven, what are you--" In order to properly address his reindeer, he turned around... and gasped at what emerged from the forest behind him.

Pushing some branches out of the way, Anna smiled as she stepped into the clearing, immediately spotting Kristoff and the others. " _Kristoff!_ " she cried happily. Immediately, she ran to him.

Kristoff's heart swelled as he saw her. " _Anna!_ "

The two quickly collided and wrapped their arms around each other, Kristoff sweeping Anna off her feet as they hugged one another tightly.

"I'm so glad you're okay," Kristoff said, holding her close in his arms.

"Oh, Kristoff, I was worried sick," Anna cried, nuzzling her head up against his chest. "I saw you being attacked by the Earth Giants and I was too far away to help you..."

"It's okay," he said, stroking her hair. " _I'm_ okay. I'm just glad you're safe."

Sniffling, the princess lifted her head and looked up at her boyfriend. "I am so sorry, Kristoff," she said, reaching up and wiping her tears away. "I've been so awful to you lately. I never should have left the camp until you were with us. I was just so wrapped up in trying to keep Elsa safe because I didn't want to lose her again. But then I almost lost _you_..." She hugged Kristoff tighter, causing him to audibly grunt. Anna realized she was crushing him and quickly let go. "Heh. Sorry," she said sheepishly.

Kristoff chuckled, placing his hands on her shoulders and looking into her eyes. "I love you, Anna. And I know you've had a lot on your mind since all this started. It's not all your fault that I got left behind. I knew we were in the middle of an important mission and I... I never should have wandered off like that. Can you ever forgive me?"

"Oh, Kristoff, of course I can!" Anna cried happily, nodding quickly. "Can you forgive me?"

He smiled. "You know I do." They hugged tightly once more and brought their lips together. Sven, standing on the other side of Kristoff, looked away awkwardly and tried not to interrupt. Finally, they pulled away, letting their arms fall to their sides. "Oh, so, hey," Kristoff started. "Speaking of Elsa, where is she? I can't believe you'd let her out of your sight."

"Wait, she's not here?" Anna asked in surprised confusion. "That's strange. I would've thought Nøkk was fast enough to get her here long before me."

It was Kristoff's turn to be confused. "Who's Nøkk?"

"Hmm? Oh, the Water Spirit," she told her boyfriend with a smile.

Kristoff's face dropped. "Oh."

Anna raised an eyebrow. "Why 'oh?'"

Kristoff opened his mouth to regale Anna with the tale of the group's harrowing battle against the Forest Spirits, but sighed, deciding against it. "It's a long story. I'll tell you on the way home." He paused for a moment. While he had obviously noticed it before now, something finally registered in his mind. "Also, you're wearing ice."

Anna laughed and nodded, brushing some hair behind her ear. "Yeah, that... That's also a long story that I'll be happy to tell you later."

Kristoff nodded, then chuckled. "I like it. You should wear it more often."

Anna laughed and playfully smacked his arm.

"Your Highness!" Anna turned to face Mattias as he approached her. "Thank goodness. After all this insanity, it's a real relief to see you back safe and sound."

"Thank you, Lieutenant," she said with a smile, nodding. "It's good to _be_ safe and sound. For a while there, I wasn't sure I would be."

Mattias nodded, then realized something. "Where is the queen?" he asked her.

"I don't know," she told him. "We agreed to meet up here. She should have made it here by now." Although she stood by what she'd decided earlier, she couldn't help but start to grow concerned for her sister. Nøkk was as fast as a shooting star. It should've been able to make the journey to Arendelle and back by now. _Unless... Something went wrong,_ Anna thought, biting her lip in worry.

Kristoff looked down at his beloved's face and saw the obvious concern on it. "D'you want to go look for her?" he offered.

Anna looked up at him, pondering his idea, then took a deep breath and shook her head. "No. At least, not just yet. Elsa's a big girl," she said. "She can handle herself. Let's give her some time to get here before sending out a search party." _Come on, Elsa..._

Mattias nodded. "We're at your command, your Highness," he told her. "Whenever you're ready to head out, we'll be with you."

"Thank you," she said with a nod. "For right now, let's just... What is going on over there?" Anna had been so busy talking to Kristoff and Mattias about Elsa she hadn't even noticed all the commotion going on with the Northuldra. Furrowing her brow in confusion, Anna made her way over to the tribespeople as they were all clearly gathered around someone. She guessed perhaps they were surrounding Yelena, until she saw a brief flash of familiar white hair in the center of the group. She smiled widely as she made her way through the crowd.

Sure enough, her sister was there. As Anna got closer, she saw her speaking to Yelena and Honeymaren. "Your mere presence... It has such an incredible effect on the spirits. I've never seen anything like it before," she heard Yelena telling Elsa.

Honeymaren heard her elder's words and nodded in agreement, then added "You know... You belong up here."

Elsa smiled at their words, as if liking what she was hearing. Liking the idea of belonging here in the forest. Anna had a look of horror on her face, but pushed it aside as she emerged from the crowd and approached her sister. "Elsa?"

The queen turned and spotted her sister, her eyes lighting up. "Anna!" she beamed happily. As soon as Anna was close enough, she threw her arms around her sister, hugging her tight. "Goodness," Elsa laughed as she returned the hug just as tightly. "It hasn't been _that_ long since we've seen each other," she teased.

"Oh, shaddup," Anna mumbled as she hugged her. Finally ending the hug and pulling away, she looked at Elsa. "Did you just get here? I figured you would've gotten here long before I did."

"I let Nøkk head back to the Dark Sea, so I had to walk here," Elsa explained. "I felt bad just using him as my personal steed."

Anna nodded in understanding, then jerked up as she realized something. "Oh! So, what happened? Is Arendelle...?"

Elsa smiled, taking her sister's hands in hers. "Arendelle is safe, Anna. Together, Nøkk and I were able to stop the flood."

"Oh, thank you," Anna sighed, placing her hand on her breast in relief. Turning around, she saw Kristoff, Sven, Mattias, and the soldiers approaching. "Arendelle still stands," she told them. With a smile, she added "The queen saw to it personally."

As the small group let relieved looks come over their faces, Elsa made a guilty, uncertain expression come over hers as she heard her sister's choice of words, but quickly got rid of it before Anna could see. A second later, Anna turned around and faced her. "So, what now?" she asked her. "We go home now, right?"

"Yes, going home is definitely..." Elsa let her voice trail off as she started looking around the area. "I'm suddenly realizing I'm hearing a distinct lack of motor mouth."

Anna gasped as she realized what her sister meant. "Olaf!" She turned to her boyfriend. "Kristoff, where's Olaf? He found you, didn't he?"

Kristoff went pale and Sven let out a sad groan, lowering his head. He lifted his satchel and sighed. "Oh, Anna, Elsa... I'm so sorry..."

The sisters looked at him, uncertain. "Kristoff, what are you...?" Anna began, but she went dead silent as Kristoff reached into his satchel and pulled out twigs, lumps of coal, and a carrot. Elsa gasped.

"I don't know what happened," he told them, his voice shaky as he held the objects out for them to see. "We were making our way through the forest looking for you guys and he was going on about his trivia facts, and then he just... just..." Kristoff couldn't bring himself to say it.

"It must've been when I froze..." Elsa realized.

Anna turned to her sister. "Elsa, can you...?"

"I don't know," Elsa admitted, staring in horror at the carrot and twigs. "I mean, I can make another snowman that looks like Olaf, sure, but... I don't know if it'll be him or not."

"Please try?" Anna asked, desperate.

Steadying herself, Elsa nodded and took a step back, giving her magic plenty of space to work. Closing her eyes, she focused, remembering what she was thinking and feeling when she first made him, then let her mind run through all her memories of Olaf. How he laughed. How he sang and danced. How he was always there to keep everyone smiling. And how he always liked warm hugs. Nodding, Elsa unfurled her arm and let her magic flow from her hand. Appearing from nowhere, snow began to swirl around and gather into a familiar shape, forming what at least looked like Olaf. As the snowman took form, Anna and Kristoff took the carrot, twigs, and coal, placing them on his body where they'd been once before. The snowman built, they stepped back and stood with Elsa, praying this would work.

Slowly, the snowman began to move. His eyelids started to flutter and his mouth gradually curled into a smile. Looking up, he saw the three humans staring down at him. "Hi!" he spoke cheerfully. "My name is Olaf and I like warm hugs! And you guys are...?"

The three of them stared at the snowman, their faces dropping. Their hearts sinking. Sven let out a sad groan. This snowman may have looked and acted the same, but--

The snowman let out a loud snort, laughing heartily. "Guys, I'm kidding! Elsa! Anna! Kristoff! Sven! It's me!" He smiled up at his friends.

The three of them stood there for a moment, clearly dumbfounded. " _OLAF!_ " they finally shouted simultaneously, clearly unamused.

"Aw, I'm sorry, you guys," he chortled. "But that's not a joke you get a lot of opportunities for, so I had to take the shot while I had it!"

Sven answered by reaching over, biting down on Olaf's nose, yanking it off his face, and swallowing it whole. The snowman let out a squeak of surprise and dismay.

"You can get a new one when we get back to Arendelle," Elsa told him crossly before the three of them turned around and walked away, shaking their heads.

Olaf opened his mouth to protest, then shrugged. "You know what? That's fair."

The rest of the day passed without much incident. The Arendellians helped the Northuldra restore their camp, setting up a few huts. By the time that was over, the Northuldra insisted that their newfound friends stay the night, to which they agreed. The Northuldra made a feast for their guests and even made an extra few huts for them to sleep in. Elsa, of course, insisted that they not bother for her, creating her own hut out of ice. No one really spoke of the death defying adventures they'd all been through, instead making calm, friendly conversation for the most part. Soon, everyone turned in for the night. Elsa lay awake in her bed, alone with her thoughts, her mind racing. But despite her busy mind, she eventually drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Night passed. The sun began to lift into the sky. Yawning and stretching her arms, Anna emerged from her hut, the first of her group to rise. Or at least, she thought she was. Looking around, she saw Elsa a ways away, speaking with Honeymaren, a fair distance from the other Northuldra. Anna recalled Honeymaren's words to her sister the previous day and frowned slightly, though she quickly replaced it as she approached the duo.

"Good morning, you two," she greeted them, a sleepy smile on her face.

Elsa turned around at the sound of her sister's voice, smiling. "Good morning, sleepy head. It's about time you woke up."

"Oh, hush, this is early for me," Anna laughed. She turned to the Northuldran girl. "Good morning, Honeymaren."

Honeymaren nodded. "Good morning, Princess Anna." She glanced at Elsa, then back to Anna. "Here, I'll give you two some sister time," she said, making her way back to the others.

"Thanks...?" Anna said with a confused chuckle, watching Honeymaren leave before turning back to Elsa. "So, when do we head out?" she asked.

"Well, before we do that..." Elsa bit her lip, hesitating. "We need to talk."

Anna already felt her heart sink, but she managed to keep it together. "Y-yeah? What about?"

Elsa took a deep breath, clasping her hands together as she gathered her thoughts. "Well, Anna, last night, before I fell asleep, I was thinking about things. Everything we've gone through and done since arriving in the forest. Seeing Mother and Father again. Fighting King Runeard. Me being the Fifth Spirit... which I still need to figure out what that means," she said with a soft chuckle. She glanced at Anna, who was watching her intently as she waited for her point. "At any rate, I've come to a realization, Anna. I'm about to make a very important, life-changing decision."

"I knew it," Anna said shakily, unable to keep quiet anymore. " _I knew it!_ You're leaving Arendelle, aren't you?"

Elsa's eyes opened wide and she stared at her younger sister. "Wait, what?"

"You're leaving Arendelle and staying here in the Enchanted Forest!" Tears started welling in Anna's eyes. "Ugh, as soon as she said it, I _knew_ \--"

"Anna! _Anna!_ " Elsa cried out, reaching forward and placing her hands on her sibling's shoulders. "I'm not leaving Arendelle!"

"And of course, why wouldn't you, this place is--" Anna cut herself off as Elsa's words registered in her head. "...You're not?"

"No, silly!" Elsa laughed softly, looking into Anna's eyes. "Why on Earth would I do that?"

"I... I just thought..." Anna reached up and wiped away the tears that had started to form in her eyes. "Honeymaren said you should stay up here and you looked like you liked the idea and..."

Elsa gave her sister a look, her hands still on her shoulders. "Anna. Honeymaren is a lovely girl and the Northuldra are a great people... but I just met them, what? Yesterday? Two days ago? I'm not gonna move up here just because they say suggest it once!"

"Y-you mean it?" Anna asked, sniffling.

"Of course I mean it!" Elsa insisted. "Arendelle is my home! You and Olaf and even Kristoff and Sven are my family! You think I'm just gonna move out of my home and live out in the mountains like a crazy person?"

Wiping away the last of her tears, Anna couldn't help but grin. "I mean, it wouldn't be the first time," she teased.

Elsa gasped playfully. "Why, you little brat!" she laughed. Wrapping her arms around Anna, Elsa hugged her tightly. Anna did the same, returning the hug just as strong. "I'm not going anywhere, Anna," Elsa told her. "I promise."

Finally, the hug ended, and they pulled away. "So... What's the big decision, then?" Anna asked, a big smile on her face. "As long as it's not you leaving, I can handle anything!"

"Ah, yeah, that," Elsa said, briefly clasping her hands again, looking a little nervous. "Well, like I said, I need to spend some time figuring out what being Fifth Spirit means." Anna nodded. "And not just what the job entails, if anything, but also what it means to me. Is it something I even want to pursue? Is it something I want to go above and beyond what's expected of me with? There are so many questions that need answering."

Anna nodded again, trying to understand. "And so...?"

"And so, since this is going to be keeping me busy for a while..." Uncertain, Elsa lifted her face, her eyes meeting Anna's. She hesitated for a moment. "I can't be the Fifth Spirit _and_ the Queen of Arendelle."

For a moment, Anna looked at her sister, the implication not quite hitting her. But as soon as it did, her eyes became as wide as salad plates. " _You're stepping down?_ " Anna's jaw was agape. "But... Who's gonna be queen? Who's going to lead Arendelle?" Elsa chuckled and grinned expectantly, waiting for her sister to catch on. Anna's eyes widened to the point Elsa was starting to worry they'd fall out. "ME?"

"No, Anna. Olaf," Elsa teased. "Of course you! You're next in line, aren't you?"

Anna began rapidly shaking her head. "Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no! Elsa, no, I can't be queen! I don't know _anything_ about how to lead a kingdom!"

Elsa gave her sister a look. "Anna, you do too."

"Okay, yeah, I know a couple things that you've shown me before, but that's nowhere near enough to actually do the job! I haven't been properly trained or taken royalty classes or anything!"

Elsa reached up and started rubbing her sister's upper arms. "Anna, it's alright. I don't expect you to be an expert right out of the gate. And you don't have to be! I didn't know everything when I became queen. I'm still learning stuff to this day."

"Yeah, but... but..." Anna stammered, trying to wrap her head around all this. Breathing heavily, she looked up at Elsa's face. Finally, she managed to collect herself enough to string together a sentence. "You have to help me, Elsa. A royal advisor something or other. Just to help me get through the transition period. _Please._ "

The older sister smiled and nodded. "I think I can do that."

"Okay. Good." Anna stood there for a moment. Thinking. Absorbing. "I think... I think I can do this." She turned and looked at the current queen. "Thank you, Elsa," Anna said softly. Moving in close, she hugged her sister again.

"We'll go over things more when we get back to Arendelle, alright?" Elsa suggested as she held the princess.

Anna nodded, holding Elsa tight. "I'll go wake up Kristoff."

"Sounds good," Elsa said with a smile. After a moment, she realized she was still in the hug with her sister. "Uhm, Anna. I thought you were gonna go wake up Kristoff?" she pointed out with a chuckle.

"I know, shaddup," Anna mumbled.

* * *

The next few weeks were a hectic time for the royal sisters. Upon returning to Arendelle, everyone took a few days to recuperate from their adventure. But before long their quiet time was done with and it was time to get to work. Anna began undergoing training and classes to prepare her for her upcoming position as queen. Though she hated the process, she was at least a fast learner and began picking things up rather quickly. As promised, Elsa helped her out when she needed it, staying with her and helping her work things out well into the night if need be. But when she wasn't busy with her sister, Elsa was going through the royal library, finding her father's old books about magic and reading them from cover to cover, seeing if she could find any reference to the Fifth Spirit. Every now and then, when she knew Anna would be busy for a few hours, she'd spend time talking with Grand Pabbie, or make her way up to the Enchanted Forest - thanks to some assistance from Nøkk - and discuss things with the Northuldra, learning everything she could about their legends and history with the Forest Spirits. Both sisters were busier than they could remember ever being.

Before either of them realized, the big day had arrived.

"Your Highness!" came the voice of Kai as he knocked on Anna's bedroom door. "It's time to rise and--"

"No, I know, Kai, thank you! I've been up for hours!" But instead of Anna's usual excuse making as she lay half-asleep in bed, this time she actually _had_ been awake for hours, even though the sun had only risen just recently. The redhead sat upright in her bed, nervously fiddling with her hair as her mind raced, her eyes tired from lack of sleep. _It's okay. It's no big deal. You've got this. This is your birthright, right? You were literally born to do this. Yeah! Yeah, I WAS born to do this! I can do this. I can do this! I can DO this!_

As Anna tried to convince herself she had nothing to worry about, she glanced over to the side of the room, her eyes settling on her brand new queen dress as it hung nearby. It was a beautiful outfit of black and purple and teal. As she stared at it, Anna thought about how soon she'd have to put it on and head out to the ceremony and--

Anna's face dropped as she felt her heart race.

_I can't do this._


	12. Chapter XII

Hours passed and soon it was almost time for the ceremony to begin. Having finished making sure everything was perfect and ready for her sister's coronation, Elsa made her way to the chapel and headed towards the same room she sat in as she awaited her own coronation three years prior. She smiled as she looked down at her dress, the same one she wore on that fateful day. Her platinum hair was not the same as it was that day, however. Elsa had put it back into its signature braid, a choice Anna had strongly approved of. The only other thing missing from Elsa's attire was the crown... Well, that and the gloves. Elsa smirked to herself. She couldn't believe that whole ordeal was only a mere three years ago. It felt so much longer than that.

Unfortunately, as Elsa grew closer to the room, the smile on her face faded as she saw Kai, Kristoff, and Olaf waiting outside the door, concerned looks on their faces as they talked with one another.

"Gentlemen...?" she asked as she approached them, her voice apprehensive. "What's going on?"

"Oh, your Majesty, thank goodness you're here," Kai began. "It's Princess Anna. She's... stressed."

Kristoff stepped forward. "I think all the pressure--" he began, then stopped as he realized he wasn't sure if Kai was done yet or not. "Uh, sorry. Go on." The royal overseer simply shook his head, gesturing to the young man and letting him know that he had the floor. Kristoff nodded, turning back to Elsa. "I think all the pressure is starting to get to her. I was helping her get ready for the ceremony when she just started freaking out and kicked me out of the room. I tried telling her she's going to make a great queen and she just wasn't having any of it." He sighed. "I hate seeing her like this."

"Oh no," Elsa sighed, thinking for a moment. "I'll see if I can coax her out. Kai, can you please make sure things stay calm out here? I don't want the people getting restless."

"Of course, your Majesty," the older man responded, bowing slightly and heading over to the main section of the chapel.

"Thank you," Elsa said, watching him leave before turning to deal with Anna. She stepped towards the door, but hesitated, thinking. This would probably be the best chance she would have for the next several hours, maybe even the rest of the day. Taking a deep breath, she turned back and faced her sister's boyfriend. "Uhm, hey. Kristoff?" she started awkwardly.

The ice harvester's eyes widened. "What? Am I in trouble?" he asked quickly.

"What? No," Elsa said, shaking her head. "Look. I know you and I have never really gotten along _super_ well, but... Anna is crazy about you. She's always talking about you when we're together. You've been there for her through some really hard times and given her the love she's needed, even when I haven't been able to. In fact, knowing how Anna is, she might've gone and gotten herself killed at some point if it weren't for you keeping her safe."

"Thank you...?" Kristoff offered, raising an eyebrow, unsure as to where this was going.

Elsa chuckled softly and looked up at him. "My point is, you may not be perfect, but when it comes down to it, you're a good man and my sister is lucky to have you." She smiled. "You have my blessing to marry her."

Kristoff's face went bright red. "Y-you, uh... you knew?"

Elsa laughed. "It wasn't that hard to figure out, Kristoff. Subtlety's not your strong point."

Reaching up and scratching the back of his head, Kristoff chuckled awkwardly. "I, uh... Thank you, Elsa. Coming from both the queen and Anna's sister, that really means a lot."

"Of course," she said with a nod. "Just hurry up and propose already before she beats you to it," she teased, the two of them sharing a laugh. "Alright, boys. Wish me luck. I'm gonna go get our new queen out in time for her coronation."

"Good luck, Elsa!" Olaf told her. "I think she's all out of flowers by now, so you shouldn't have to worry." When Elsa's face contorted in confusion, the snowman clarified. "Oh! I stuck my head in earlier to see if she needed any help and she threw a vase full of flowers at me and hit me in the face. I tried to tell her... Urk, wait a sec..." Gagging slightly, Olaf opened his mouth and spat out a rose blossom, catching it in his hand. He held it up, studying it closely. "The common rose. From the family of Rosaceae, it truly is one of nature's beauties." He paused. "Not a fan of the thorns, though," he commented, tossing the flower over his shoulder and brushing his hands off. "Anyway, where was I? Oh, yeah, good luck!"

Elsa stared at her little snowman son for a moment, then shook her head, leaving the two of them behind as she approached the door.

* * *

Anna was borderline shaking as she sat at the dressing table, glaring at herself in the mirror. _You are being so stupid right now_ , she scolded herself, her eyes wide. _You can DO this! Just go out there and be queen! If you don't, you will let Arendelle down, you will let Elsa down, you will let-- OH NO I'M GONNA LET ELSA DOWN...!_ Anna whimpered as she tried and failed to pull herself together.

"Anna?" Elsa's voice came through the door as she knocked. "I'm gonna come in. Don't you throw anything at me!" she warned playfully.

Anna tried to call out, to tell her not to come in, but she couldn't manage to get the words together.

"Hey there, your Majesty," Elsa greeted her as she opened the door, stepping into the room and closing it behind her. She smiled as she saw her sister sitting in front of the mirror. "My goodness, Anna. You look beautiful." She giggled to herself. "Dare I say, beautifuller?"

"Heh, yeah. 'Beautifuller.' I remember that," Anna said flatly, almost monotone, as she stared at herself in the mirror.

Elsa sighed as her sister wasn't responding as she'd hoped. "Anna, what's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing," Anna said nervously. "I'm just having a panic attack over the fact that I'm inheriting a kingdom I'm in no way qualified to run."

Elsa frowned as she approached her sister. "Oh, Anna, you know that's not true. You've been doing great in your studies. You're going to be just fine."

"Yeah, I'm sorry Elsa, but that's not really helping me freak out any less right now," the redhead told her, breathing heavily.

Elsa made a concerned face, then stepped up behind her sister. "Here, just relax. Breathe, alright?" she urged Anna, placing her hands on her shoulders. "Close your eyes."

"What are you doing...?" Anna asked, raising an eyebrow as she started to look back at her sister.

Elsa chuckled softly. "Just trust me, silly."

Anna shrugged and sat up straight, closing her eyes. Taking a deep breath as she held Anna's shoulders, Elsa closed her eyes and focused, letting the glacier's words come to her.

" _Show yourself, they're dying to meet you  
Show yourself, it's your turn  
You are the one you've been waiting for all of your life  
Show yourself, let them see who you are  
Go to them now  
Open the door  
Don't make them wait  
One moment more_"

As Elsa opened her eyes, she saw Anna looking up at her through the mirror, smiling, her face slightly red. "That was really pretty, Elsa," she said softly.

The about-to-be-former queen smiled at the compliment. "I learned it in Ahtohallan," she told her. Stepping around the chair and crouching down so she could look at Anna directly, she reached out and took her sister's hands in hers. "Anna, I wouldn't be making you the new Queen of Arendelle if I didn't think you were fully capable of handling it."

"I know, I just..." Anna bit her lip in worry. "I just want to make sure I don't screw this up, y'know? I want to rule Arendelle perfectly, like you did."

Elsa snorted, giving her sister a look. "Anna, you and I both know that I was in no way a perfect queen. I mean, come on. My first day on the job, I froze the entire kingdom!"

The sisters softly giggled with each other at that.

"Yeah, I guess you have a point there..." Anna admitted.

"Besides," Elsa said, looking into her sister's eyes. "I don't _want_ you to rule Arendelle like I did. I want you to rule Arendelle like _you_ would." Elsa reached out and gently placed her hand on Anna's shoulder. " _You're_ queen now. I want you to rule Arendelle by making _your_ decisions and upholding _your_ laws. If I wanted you to rule Arendelle the same as I did, I'd just stay queen. But the responsibility lies with you now. And I trust you to do it well. I believe in you, Anna. More than anyone or anything."

Anna couldn't help but have a big stupid grin on her face. "You cheater. That's no fair," she giggled softly as she recognized her own words.

"Why? Is it working?" Elsa asked with a teasing grin.

"That's not the point..." Anna protested.

"That's all the point there's going to be," Elsa told her as she stood up. "You're going to make an amazing queen, Anna of Arendelle."

Anna smiled. "Thank you, Elsa." She paused for a moment. "I won't let you down."

Elsa returned the smile. "I know you won't." Anna rose up from her seat and the two sisters reached out and wrapped their arms around each other, hugging one another tightly. Finally, the hug ended and Elsa looked into her sister's eyes. "Now come on. Let's go introduce Arendelle to their new queen."

* * *

Elsa stood at the head of the chapel, the Bishop standing a little ways behind her, smiling as her people sat in their seats, eagerly awaiting the ceremony. Once it was obvious that the room was full and the doors were closed, she took a deep breath, then began to speak.

"People of Arendelle! It has been an absolute honor to act as your queen for these past three years," she told them. "Together, we have seen Arendelle through times both difficult and prosperous. And while I will always remain one of you and continue to watch out over the kingdom, circumstances have arisen that unfortunately make it necessary for me to step down as active queen. However, as we all know, I was not born an only child. My parents, King Agnarr and Queen Iduna, had two daughters, and as such we have a strong, capable woman taking over the throne. We've all known her as princess, but today, we call her queen. My sister... Anna of Arendelle."

As the gathered crowd applauded their queen's final speech to them, she turned towards the side door, waiting for her sister to emerge.

_Alright, Anna_ , the princess thought, standing at the door, her hand on the knob. _You've got this. Elsa just finished her speech. Everyone's clapping. That's your cue! Aaand... open the door. Now. Now! NOW!_ Her hand turned the knob without her realizing and she stumbled out into the chapel, sticking her leg out and catching herself before she could fall. With an awkward smile, she turned and faced the crowd, who greeted her with smiles and applause.

The coronation was a blur for Anna. She was vaguely aware of coming out of the side room, but everything after that was hazy. She thought she may have given the crowd a little speech of her own, but she wasn't entirely sure how coherent it was.

"Anna?" That sounded like Elsa's voice.

"Anna, honey?" She was pretty sure that was Kristoff.

"Elsa, you didn't freeze her again, did you?"

" _Olaf!_ "

Slowly, Anna began to blink, shaking her head as she snapped out of her stupor. As she came back to reality, she saw she was still standing in place at the front of the chapel, her hands still clutching the ceremonial orb and scepter. Except now the chapel was empty and only the four of them remained.

"Wh-what happened...?" Anna asked with a nervous chuckle.

Elsa laughed softly, putting a reassuring hand on her sister's shoulder and looking into her eyes. "You became queen."

"Oh." Anna's eyes widened as she realized she had been on autopilot for the entire coronation. "And, uh... How did that go?"

"Oh, Anna, babe, you did great!" Kristoff said, scooping the new queen up into his arms and hugging her tight, twirling her around. The sudden motion caused the orb and scepter to go flying from her hands, but they were caught by Olaf, who took them and set them aside. "You deserve this, Anna," Kristoff told her, gazing into her eyes. Setting her back down, he unfurled his arms from around her, then smiled and bowed to her. "Your Majesty."

"Wow. 'Your Majesty,'" she said with a smile, breathing a little quickly. "I did it. I'm queen. I'm Queen of Arendelle."

"Congratulations, Anna," Elsa said, wrapping her arms around her sister and hugging her tightly. As soon as the two released each other from their embrace, Anna gave her sister a big, happy smile... until realization hit her.

"Oh, no!" she gasped. "How long have I been standing here?!"

"Not that long," Elsa reassured her. "People are starting to gather at the celebration but nothing's officially started yet."

Anna let out a sigh of relief, then collected herself, nodding. "Let's go, then. We can't keep the people waiting, can we?"

* * *

With Elsa, Kristoff, and Olaf following close behind, Queen Anna made her way to the post-ceremony celebration which, unlike Elsa's, was an outside event, taking place in the castle's courtyard out underneath the warm sunshine. Anna smiled as she stepped into the courtyard, looking around at all the people who had gathered.

"Alright then," she muttered to herself, taking a deep breath. "Let's get this party started." Making her way to the front of the castle, she turned and addressed her subjects. "People of Arendelle!" she called out to the crowd. "Thank you all for coming. I'm glad we could all celebrate this day together." She opened her mouth to continue, but paused, unsure of what else to say. "Uhm... Please, enjoy yourselves!"

Everyone applauded and began to spread out around the courtyard, enjoying the party. Relaxing somewhat, Anna began to make her way around, greeting her guests.

"Your Majesty," Kai and Gerda said as she passed them, bowing. Anna nodded to them in return, smiling as she continued on. Spotting her father's old guard at the food table, she grinned and made her way over to him.

"Keeping an eye on the situation, General Mattias?" she asked teasingly.

Jumping up and turning to face his queen, Mattias quickly swallowed the bite of food he was chewing and saluted. "Your Majesty!"

Anna laughed. "Oh, please, it's a party, you don't have to be all formal right now," she reassured him.

Relaxing, the general nodded. "Thank you, Queen Anna," he said with a smile. "And yes, I actually have been keeping an eye out for any, well, uninvited guests," he told her, winking. "Not a soul from the Southern Isles or Weselton within city limits."

Anna laughed. "Why thank you, General. Good to know my party is under your airtight protection." Leaving Mattias to his own devices, Anna made her way through the crowd some more.

"Queen Anna."

Anna turned to face the person addressing her, but didn't see them. That is, until she looked down. "Oh, Grand Pabbie," she said with a smile. "Thank you for coming. I wasn't sure if you would. Or could. I don't really know how troll socializing works," she chuckled.

Pabbie bowed. "I was honored to receive the invitation, your Majesty," he told her. "You're going to make a fine queen, Anna. As always, if you're ever in need of my service..."

"Thank you, Grand Pabbie," she said, nodding. "I'll always call on you if I need you." Smiling, she began to step away to make her way through the crowd again, when she suddenly bumped into someone behind her. Someone cold. "Elsa...?" Turning to face the person, Anna discovered that it was in fact not Elsa, but instead someone rather tall.

Someone nearly _twenty feet_ tall.

"Oh," Anna squeaked, her eyes briefly widening in surprise before her usual smile took over. "Hello, Marshmallow."

"Queen Anna," the resurrected giant bellowed, nodding to the woman that was technically his aunt. The hulking beast was dressed to the nines for Anna's celebration... Well, at least for him. A large, icy bow tie sat around his neck.

"It's good to see you again. I'm glad you could make it." She paused, inhaling sharply. "You _are_ keeping an eye on the Snowgies, yes?" she asked hopefully.

"Uhh..." The giant snowman turned, looking around the courtyard. Finally, he spotted his numerous little brothers as they were tearing into a large ice cream cake. Thankfully, it was an extra one Elsa had instructed be made specifically for the little snow golems. Turning back to Anna, Marshmallow gave her a sheepish chuckle and shrugged. "Heh. Kids."

Laughing softly, Anna greeted people as she made her way through the crowd until she reached Elsa and Kristoff. "Oh, man. I still can't believe it," she said as she stood between them. "I'm queen." Kristoff was about to open his mouth to say something, when a heavy breeze started blowing... but only around the three of them. It was then that Anna noticed the autumn leaves blowing through the wind. "...Gale?"

A folded up piece of paper slapped into Anna's face.

"Is that a letter?" Elsa asked, raising an eyebrow.

Pulling it from her face, Anna opened the paper and skimmed over it. "It's from the Northuldra," she realized. She grinned mischievously. "Looks like Honeymaren's handwriting," she noted, giving Elsa a side glance.

Elsa responded with an annoyed look. "Just read it, Anna..."

Anna giggled softly as she proceeded to do so. "Congratulations on the coronation, Queen Anna. We're sorry we couldn't make it, but that's also why I'm writing. The Earth Giants are starting to act up and Yelena was wondering if Elsa could come by and look into it. Signed, Honeymaren." Lowering the letter, Anna turned to her sister. "Want me to put a hold on the festivities until you get back?"

"Oh, no," Elsa said with a smile, shaking her head. "This shouldn't take very long. The Earth Giants aren't too difficult to figure out." For a moment, Elsa closed her eyes and focused. Everyone else in the courtyard jumped with surprise when an echoing neigh was heard from the front gate.

Nøkk stood there, awaiting the Fifth Spirit.

Anna walked with her sister as they crossed the courtyard and approached the Water Spirit, nodding to the majestic creature. "Hello, Nøkk," Anna greeted him. The horse-like beast snorted, nodding in return. As she reached up and stroked the horse's watery mane, she turned and looked to her sister. "Be careful out there, Elsa. You know how rowdy the Earth Giants can be."

"Oh, Anna, I'll be fine," Elsa said as she gestured with her hands. As had happened three years prior, her icy magic enveloped and dissolved her coronation dress, replacing it with the pure white outfit she had been given in Ahtohallan, though this time she kept her hair in its braid. Hopping up onto Nøkk's back, Elsa generated her icy reins around him. "I should be back before it gets dark."

Anna nodded, then grinned again. "Say 'hi' to Honeymaren for me."

Elsa laughed, shaking her head and rolling her eyes. "Shut up, Anna."

Whipping Nøkk's reins, Elsa held on tight as the Water Spirit blasted off at full speed, leaving Arendelle behind in seconds. As Anna watched Elsa and Nøkk ride off into the distance, Kristoff, Olaf, and Sven came up and joined her, Kristoff putting his arm around her and holding her close.

"You okay?" he asked her softly. He knew she never liked it when Elsa left the kingdom, whether she'd admit it or not.

Anna glanced up at him for a moment. "Yeah," she answered finally. Looking back out towards the mountains, she caught the last of her sister as she disappeared northward. She smiled. "Yeah, I think I am."

_Some things never change  
Turn around and the time has flown  
Some things stay the same  
Though the future remains unknown  
May our good luck last  
May our past be past  
Time's moving fast, it's true  
Some things never change  
And I'm holding on tight to you_

**THE END**


End file.
